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Synonyms

sad

1 American  
[sad] / sæd /

adjective

sadder, saddest
  1. affected by unhappiness or grief; sorrowful or mournful.

    to feel sad because a close friend has moved away.

    Synonyms:
    melancholy, dejected, depressed, downhearted, downcast, gloomy, discouraged, disconsolate, despondent, unhappy
    Antonyms:
    happy
  2. expressive of or characterized by sorrow.

    sad looks;

    a sad song.

  3. causing sorrow.

    a sad disappointment;

    sad news.

  4. (of color) somber, dark, or dull; drab.

  5. deplorably bad; sorry.

    a sad attempt.

  6. Obsolete. firm or steadfast.


sād 2 American  
[sahd] / sɑd /

noun

  1. the 14th letter of the Arabic alphabet.


SAD 3 American  
  1. seasonal affective disorder.


sad 1 British  
/ sæd /

adjective

  1. feeling sorrow; unhappy

  2. causing, suggestive, or expressive of such feelings

    a sad story

  3. unfortunate; unsatisfactory; shabby; deplorable

    her clothes were in a sad state

  4. informal ludicrously contemptible; pathetic

    he's a sad, boring little wimp

  5. (of pastry, cakes, etc) not having risen fully; heavy

  6. (of a colour) lacking brightness; dull or dark

  7. archaic serious; grave

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. to express sadness or displeasure strongly

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
SAD 2 British  

abbreviation

  1. seasonal affective disorder

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • sadly adverb
  • sadness noun

Etymology

Origin of sad1

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English sæd “grave, heavy, weary,” originally “sated, full”; cognate with German satt, Gothic saths “full, satisfied”; akin to Latin satis “enough,” satur “sated,” Greek hádēn “enough.” See satiate, saturate

Origin of sād2

From Arabic

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“Even though my kids work as hard as I did, it’s sad that inheritance is their best shot at homeownership here,” she said.

From The Wall Street Journal

Smith describes it as being like "intrusive thoughts" with "no malice, no hatred and it's uncontrollable", often in moments of high emotion such as when he is sad or happy.

From BBC

Her quixotic search at times reads like a sad twist on P.D.

From The Wall Street Journal

Even when Maggie and Kate were exhausted, sad, or disinterested, they still had to make the rounds of social functions, whether in Washington, DC, or any city in which they appeared.

From Literature

Like fans, we are sad to see this series come to an end.

From Los Angeles Times