sorrow
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a very strong feeling of sadness or grief.
n.a state of intense distress or unhappiness caused by loss, disappointment, or misfortune.
Simple“He felt a great sense of sorrow after his old dog passed away.”
In context“The community expressed deep sorrow following the news of the factory closure, which had been the town's primary employer for decades.”
- 02 C1 Advanced
n.a specific event or trouble that makes you feel sad.
n.a specific cause or instance of grief or misfortune; frequently used in the plural form.
Simple“She had experienced many sorrows in her long life, but she remained kind.”
In context“The poet wrote extensively about the joys and sorrows of rural life, capturing the harsh realities of the changing seasons.”
SynonymsAntonyms - 03 C2 Proficiency
v.to feel or show great sadness.
v.to experience or express deep distress or regret; functions both transitively and intransitively.
Simple“The whole nation sorrowed at the loss of their leader.”
In context“They sorrowed over the missed opportunities of their youth, reflecting on paths not taken with a quiet, dignified regret.”
“I wouldn’t recommend it as a stocking-filler; the stocking would fall to the floor with the weight of sorrow.”
From Middle English sorwe, sorow, sorewe, from Old English sorg, sorh (“care, anxiety, sorrow, grief”), from Proto-West Germanic sorgu, from Proto-Germanic surgō (compare West Frisian soarch, Dutch zorg, German Sorge, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian sorg), from Proto-Indo-European *swergʰ- (“watch over, worry; be ill, suffer”) (compare Old Irish serg (“sickness”), Tocharian B sark (“sickness”), Lithuanian sirgti (“be sick”), Sanskrit सूर्क्षति (sū́rkṣati, “worry”). Despite the similarity in form and meaning, not historically related to sorry and sore.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.