sorrowful

Sorrowful is an adjective used to describe a state or expression of sorrow, sadness, or grief. It can refer to a person’s mood, a reaction to loss, or a situation that inspires deep emotional distress. In everyday language, sorrowful is often used to convey a sense of lasting mourning rather than fleeting disappointment; it is closely related to mournful and lamentable.

Etymology: The word sorrowful is formed from sorrow plus the suffix -ful. Sorrow itself comes from Old English sorg, related to other Germanic words for distress. The sense of enduring sadness has been carried into many languages through similar compounds.

Usage: Sorrowful appears in literature, journalism, and speech to emphasize emotional depth. In clinical or scholarly contexts, more precise terms such as sadness or depressive mood are used, but sorrowful remains common in expressive or poetic writing. In religious traditions, "sorrow" and "sorrowful" appear in discourse about suffering; for example, the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Catholic Rosary reflect contemplation of Jesus' Passion.

See also: mournful, melancholic, lament.