Comprehensive
Dictionary Suite
Help
Help
Help
 
     

dis·mal

dismal

 
 
pronunciation:
dIz ml
features:
Word Combinations (adjective), Word History, Word Explorer, Word Parts
part of speech: adjective
definition 1: cheerless or depressing; gloomy.
The room was dismal, with tiny windows, filthy curtains, and gray walls.She complained of the region's dismal climate.Visiting him in the field hospital was a dismal experience.
synonyms:
cheerless, dreary, gloomy, somber
antonyms:
cheerful, convivial, rosy
similar words:
black, bleak, dark, disconsolate, drab, funereal, grim, melancholy, miserable, moody, morose, sad, sullen, tenebrous
definition 2: pitiful, inept, or uninteresting.
His dismal joke was met only with quizzical looks.It was a chore to read such dismal essays.Their efforts resulted in dismal failure.
synonyms:
awful, miserable, uninteresting
similar words:
abysmal, boring, dreadful, inept, inferior, pitiful, terrible, weak
Word CombinationsSubscriber feature About this feature
derivations: dismally (adv.), dismalness (n.)
Word History
Dismal is from dies male, a Latin phrase that means "evil days." In medieval Britain, two days in each month were marked on the calendar as unlucky days.
Word Explorer
See
  happiness, sad
Word PartsSubscriber feature About this feature