melancholy

C2 Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /ˈmɛl.ənˌkɑ.li/ UK /ˈmɛlənkəli/ See IPA manual

Freq #11402

Meanings

1

noun
A deep, thoughtful sadness.

A quiet melancholy settled over her as she watched the summer end.
2

adj
Feeling or expressing deep sadness.

He gave a melancholy smile and turned away from the window.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a deep, thoughtful sadness. dejection depression despondency gloom

2 adj · feeling or expressing deep... melancholic somber cheerless blue

Word family

Derived forms melancholilymelancholinessmelancholistmelancholizesolemncholyunmelancholy

Related forms melancholia melancholic sadness

Etymology

From Middle English malencolie, from Old French melancolie, from Ancient Greek μελαγχολία (melankholía, “atrabiliousness”) (from μέλας (mélas), μελαν- (melan-, “black, dark, murky”) + χολή (kholḗ, “bile”)), referring to the humour which ancient Hippocratic and later Galenic medicine associated with sadness and despondency. Compare the Latin ātra bīlis (“black bile”). The adjectival use is a Middle English innovation, perhaps influenced by the suffixes -y, -ly. Doublet of melancholia.

malencolie Middle English melancolie Old French

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Topics

Emotions & Feelings Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# melancholy

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun, adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈmɛl.ənˌkɑ.li/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈmɛlənkəli/
**Frequency rank:** 11402

## Meanings
1. A deep, thoughtful sadness.
2. Feeling or expressing deep sadness.

## Examples
- A quiet melancholy settled over her as she watched the summer end.
- He gave a melancholy smile and turned away from the window.

## Derived Forms
- melancholily
- melancholiness
- melancholist
- melancholize
- solemncholy
- unmelancholy

## Related Forms
- melancholia
- melancholic
- sadness

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: malencolie
- Root: melancolie

## Etymology
From Middle English malencolie, from Old French melancolie, from Ancient Greek μελαγχολία (melankholía, “atrabiliousness”) (from μέλας (mélas), μελαν- (melan-, “black, dark, murky”) + χολή (kholḗ, “bile”)), referring to the humour which ancient Hippocratic and later Galenic medicine associated with sadness and despondency. Compare the Latin ātra bīlis (“black bile”). The adjectival use is a Middle English innovation, perhaps influenced by the suffixes -y, -ly. Doublet of melancholia.

## AI Etymology
Melancholy is from Middle English malencolie, from Old French melancolie, from Ancient Greek μελαγχολία (melankholía, “atrabiliousness”) (from μέλας (mélas), μελαν- (melan-, “black, dark, murky”) + χολή (kholḗ, “bile”)), referring to the humour which ancient Hippocratic and later Galenic medicine associated with sadness and despondency. Compare the Latin ātra bīlis (“black bile”). The adjectival use is a Middle English innovation, perhaps influenced by the suffixes -y, -ly. Doublet of melancholia. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include malencolie (Middle English) and melancolie (Old French). Current senses include a deep, thoughtful sadness and feeling or expressing deep sadness. The wider family includes derived forms such as melancholily, melancholiness, melancholist, melancholize, and solemncholy; related words such as melancholia, melancholic, and sadness.

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

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melancholy

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