Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- adj. Dark; gloomy.
- adj. Dull or dark in color.
- adj. Melancholy; dismal: a somber mood.
- adj. Serious; grave.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- Dark; dull; dusky; gloomy: as, a somber hue; somber clouds.
- Dismal; melancholy; dull: opposed to cheerful.
- Synonyms Darksome, cloudy, murky.
- To make somber, dark, or gloomy; shade.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- adj. Dull; dusky; somewhat dark; gloomy.
- adj. Melancholy; sad; grave; depressing.
- v. To make somber, or dark; to make shady.
- n. Gloom; obscurity; duskiness; somberness.
WordNet 3.0
- adj. lacking brightness or color; dull.
- adj. grave or even gloomy in character
Etymologies
- French sombre, from Old French, from *sombrer, to cast a shadow, from Late Latin subumbrāre, from Latin sub umbrā, in shadow : sub, under; see sub- + umbrā, ablative of umbra, shadow.
Examples
“Keeping his expression somber, he waited for the polite applause to die down.”
“His voice was warm, but his expression somber, and Riker feared Deanna was probably right about more bad news.”
“That was much the same thing Torre told players in what he described as a somber clubhouse once the Dodgers had filed in by mid-afternoon.”
“Kool J sighed and answered the question in somber fashion.”
What Do Real Thugs Think of The Wire? Part Nine - Freakonomics Blog - NYTimes.com
“Hayward reiterated his decision to leave Butler at a May 7 news conference that was characterized by a somber tone.”
“While we remain somber and dazed by the unfortunate turn of events in the finance world, we will welcome applicants with open arms.”
Silicon Alley Tells Wall Street: Send Us Your Résumés - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com
“They placed a floating floral wreath on each and stood in somber silence.”
“As he watched Chase, his brother turned to him, his expression somber, thoughtful.”
Wicked Pleasures
“Rather than give much further elucidation of this plaintive essay written for Esquire in somber post-flapper days, this person has the facts and history.”
“Doe enlisted the great Neko Case to help out on one song, and Doe's love of Case's Blacklisted record is apparent: like that (amazing!) disc, Forever is heavy on moody reverb, doused in somber imagery and full of unexpected bursts of energy.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘somber’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4084 more...
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@vcb.etym.prjct - SAT Catchall
brainfood for my hungry, eager pupils
iconoclast, glacial, agnostic, histrionic, treacly, contemptuous, captious, bombastic, bombast, perfidy, quiescence, sordid and 148 more...
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good,everyday use
ballsy, somber, acerbic, gouge, muffin top, decrepit, bumping monkeys
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