wistful

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   showing pensive sadness

   the sensitive and wistful response of a poet to the gentler phases of beauty

2. 2
   adj

   Full of longing or yearning.

   His eyes grew wistful as he recalled his university days.

3. 3
   adj

   Sad and thoughtful.

Etymology

Presumably from *whistful, from whist (“silent”) + -ful, based on older wistly. It is implausible that it derives from wishful, the required sound change being wishful → *wisful → wistful, which could not occur in Modern English, particularly not with wishful continuing in use. However, the sense of “longing” appears to be influenced by wishful, making wistful an ambiguous poetic word.