dirgeful

9.6

Very sad in a way that sounds like a funeral song

adjective
/ˈdɜrdʒfəl/

: luctuoso

As she read the dirgeful poem, the audience felt the weight of her grief.

Examples

During the funeral, the dirgeful music brought tears to the mourners' eyes.
The mood is, by turns, dirgeful, jocular, elegiac, and nasty, depending on who's doing the eulogizing.

Fiction book (1991)
The dirgeful melody echoed through the empty church, evoking feelings of deep sorrow.

Synonyms

dismal

vsdirgeful

62 4.5

Making you feel sad and hopeless

is centered on solemn songlike mournfulness, not general depressing effect

somber

vsdirgeful

52 4.6

Serious and sad in feeling or mood

is musical and songlike in sorrow rather than primarily serious mood

dreary

vsdirgeful

44 3.8

A gloomy, boring time that makes you feel sad or tired

is more musical and solemn in sorrow than plain dullness

melancholy

vsdirgeful

37 5.9

Feeling or showing deep sadness

is more explicitly like a funeral song than a low, long sadness

tearful

vsdirgeful

26 1.8

Showing you are about to cry because of a strong feeling

is solemn and songlike rather than just showing visible crying

glum

vsdirgeful

23 4.1

Looking or feeling sad and quiet

is stronger, solemn, and songlike sorrow rather than quiet unhappiness

mournful

vsdirgeful

18 3.9

Feeling deep sadness because of a loss

is specifically like a funeral song and more solemn than general sadness

sorrowful

vsdirgeful

14 3.6

Feeling very sad because of loss or disappointment

is specifically a funeral-song quality, more solemn than general sadness

plaintive

vsdirgeful

10 7.9

Having a sad sound that makes people feel unhappy

is more specifically like a funeral song than a pleading sound

funereal

vsdirgeful

3 8.1

Having a sad, serious mood like a ceremony for someone who has died

is sorrowful in a songlike way rather than only fitting funerals

doleful

vsdirgeful

3 8.2

Feeling or showing deep sadness

is focused on funeral-song likeness rather than simply causing sadness

elegiac

vsdirgeful

Literature

2 9.1

Showing sad feelings about something lost or in the past

is used for present funeral-like sorrow rather than past-focused lament

dolorous

vsdirgeful

Literature

1 9.9

Feeling or showing deep sadness because of a loss

is more about solemn songlike mourning than intense personal distress

drear

vsdirgeful

Archaic

1 9.9

A dull, cold, and depressing place or scene

is about mournful songlike sorrow rather than bleak dullness

plangent

vsdirgeful

Literature

1 9.9

A loud, deep sound that feels sad

is about funeral-song sorrow rather than only sound quality

dirgelike

vsdirgeful

8.8

Slow and sad in a way that shows deep sorrow

is the same meaning but uses a different adjective ending

dirgy

vsdirgeful

9.5

Slow and sad in a way that reminds you of a funeral

is more generally about sorrow than only sound or atmosphere

wailful

vsdirgeful

Archaic

9.8

Showing deep sadness with loud, long cries

is typically a solemn songlike sorrow rather than noisy crying

gloomful

vsdirgeful

Archaic

7.8

Dark and sad in a way that makes you feel unhappy

is a specific funeral-song mournfulness rather than general dark atmosphere

Antonyms

joyful

70 1.0

Feeling or showing great happiness

celebratory

31 4.0

Made to show happiness at a special event

How Mournful

heartrending

2 7.8

dirgeful

9.6

sorrowful

14 3.6

sad

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

dirgeful positive

Morphology

dirgeful = dirge (transparent) = dirge + ful

Standard adjective formed by adding the productive suffix '-ful' to 'dirge', yielding 'full of or characterized by a dirge or mournfulness'.

Etymology

Dirgeful comes from dirge, a sad 'funeral song', and dirge comes from an old church word dirige meaning 'direct' or 'guide'. So dirgeful describes something full of sorrow, like the quiet, mournful music at a funeral.