dismal

C1 Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /ˈdɪzməl/ See IPA manual

adj noun Freq #21852

Meanings

1

adj
Sad, gloomy, and depressing.

The storm made for a dismal weekend.
2

adj
Very bad or disappointingly poor.

The team's performance this season has been dismal.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · sad, gloomy, and depressing. bleak cheerless dreary depressing

2 adj · very bad or disappointingly... inadequate poor

Word family

Forms dismallerdismallest

Derived forms dismalisedismalitydismalizedismallydismalnessundismal

Etymology

From Middle English dismal, dismale, from Anglo-Norman dismal, from Old French (li) dis mals (“(the) bad days”), from Medieval Latin diēs malī (“bad days”).

dismal Middle English (li) dis mals Old French diēs malī la-med

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Topics

Emotions & Feelings Word Formation & Derivatives

# dismal

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** adj, noun
**IPA (US):** ˈdɪzməl
**Frequency rank:** 21852

## Meanings
1. Sad, gloomy, and depressing.
2. Very bad or disappointingly poor.

## Examples
- The storm made for a dismal weekend.
- The team's performance this season has been dismal.

## Derived Forms
- dismalise
- dismality
- dismalize
- dismally
- dismalness
- undismal

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dismal
- Root: (li) dis mals
- Root: diēs malī

## Etymology
From Middle English dismal, dismale, from Anglo-Norman dismal, from Old French (li) dis mals (“(the) bad days”), from Medieval Latin diēs malī (“bad days”).

## AI Etymology
Dismal is from Middle English dismal, dismale, from Anglo-Norman dismal, from Old French (li) dis mals (“(the) bad days”), from Medieval Latin diēs malī (“bad days”). In present-day use, it can mean sad, gloomy, and depressing, or very bad or disappointingly poor. Derived formations include dismalise, dismality, dismalize, dismally, dismalness.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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