cheerless

2 5.5

Not bright or warm and making people feel sad

adjective
/ˈtʃɪr.ləs/

: triste

The season's cheerless without the children.
cheerless room
cheerless day
cheerless place

Examples

Claudel answered, his face tense, his eyes cheerless in the harsh fluorescent light.

Fiction book (2001)
In London, churches were cheerless.

Fiction book (1990)
At first, his face was blank, but then it fell into a broken, cheerless smile.

Fiction book (1996)
Clearly, when God had said, "Let there be light," He hadn't had this cheerless room in mind, she thought.

Fiction book (1998)
Outside, her cheerless and windowless little fort.

Fiction book (1997)
At dawn, the now somewhat cheerless group of adventurers set forth on foot.

Fiction book (1993)
By mid-afternoon, he faced the cheerless prospect of another night's snow camp.

Fiction book (1997)
Will tried for a moment to imagine Gordon Glen without her; it was a bleak and cheerless place he saw.

Fiction book (1994)
In the rainy evening gloom, the cafe looked tawdry and cheerless despite the lights glowing inside.

Fiction book (1998)
In the rainy evening gloom, the cafe looked tawdry and cheerless despite the lights glowing inside.

Synonyms

sad

vscheerless

∞ 1.0

Feeling unhappy or upset because of something

is specifically about lacking happiness or comfort rather than simple sorrow

depressed

vscheerless

441 3.5

Feeling very sad and without hope

is less intense, describing a gloomy quality rather than severe sadness

dark

vscheerless

377 1.0

Feeling gloomy and sad

expresses lack of happiness or comfort more generally rather than brooding depth

depressing

vscheerless

219 2.2

Making you feel very sad and that things will not get better

is the adjective for a gloomy quality rather than causing feelings in others

grim

vscheerless

73 4.2

Sad and hopeless, making things seem very bad

is used for a plain lack of happiness rather than stark hopelessness

bleak

vscheerless

68 4.7

Showing little hope or encouragement

describes lack of happiness or comfort in feeling rather than future prospects

dismal

vscheerless

62 4.5

Making you feel sad and hopeless

focuses on lacking happiness or comfort as a property not on causing sorrow

dreary

vscheerless

44 3.8

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

describes an overall absence of happiness rather than mere dullness

melancholy

vscheerless

37 5.9

Feeling or showing deep sadness

is milder, naming a gloomy quality rather than deep personal sorrow

gloomy

vscheerless

29 2.5

Feeling sad and without much hope

is milder, focusing on lack of happiness or comfort rather than deep sadness

sullen

vscheerless

26 4.7

Being quiet and bad-tempered, showing that a person is upset

refers to a general gloomy quality rather than an angry silent mood

glum

vscheerless

23 4.1

Looking or feeling sad and quiet

is about lacking happiness or comfort rather than quietly visible sadness

morose

vscheerless

15 7.9

Being quiet and unhappy and showing little interest in others

focuses on lacking happiness and comfort without the ill temper element

joyless

vscheerless

8 4.6

Not feeling happy or showing any pleasure

focuses on lacking happiness or comfort rather than absence of joy

melancholic

vscheerless

5 7.2

Feeling deep, quiet sadness

refers to a general lack of happiness or comfort rather than deep sorrow tendency

downhearted

vscheerless

1 4.1

Feeling sad and without much hope

expresses lacking happiness or comfort as a quality rather than personal discouragement

unmerry

vscheerless

1 7.0

Not cheerful or happy

is about lacking comfort or happiness rather than just missing merriment

low-spirited

vscheerless

1 5.1

Feeling sad and without much energy

describes general lack of happiness or comfort not energy level specifically

uncheerful

vscheerless

5.5

Feeling sad or making a place feel gloomy

is the same in meaning but uses a different word form

gloomful

vscheerless

Archaic

7.8

Dark and sad in a way that makes you feel unhappy

is broader, naming an overall lack of happiness rather than a setting

unhopeful

vscheerless

6.0

Not expecting success or any improvement

is about lacking happiness or comfort as tone rather than only hope

Antonyms

bright

171 1.0

Full of happiness and cheer

cheerful

111 1.0

Happy in a way you show with a smile or friendly actions

How Cheerful

joyful

70 1.0

cheerful

111 1.0

morose

15 7.9

gloomy

29 2.5

cheerless

2 5.5

Surface Forms

cheerless positive

Morphology

cheerless = cheer (transparent) = cheer + less

The adjective is formed by adding the productive suffix '-less' meaning 'without' to 'cheer', so the meaning 'without cheer' (gloomy) is directly inferable.

Etymology

Cheerless is made from cheer, a word that once meant 'face' or 'expression' and later came to mean happiness, plus the ending -less, which means 'without'. So cheerless is like having 'no smile on the face' and means lacking cheer or comfort.