sombre

/ ˈsɒmbrəs; ˈsɒmbə /

adjective

1. dismal; melancholy

   a sombre mood

2. dim, gloomy, or shadowy
3. (of colour, clothes, etc) sober, dull, or dark

Derived Forms

• ˈsombreness, noun
• sombrous, adjective
• ˈsombrely, adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of sombre¹

C18: from French, from Vulgar Latin subumbrāre (unattested) to shade, from Latin sub beneath + umbra shade

Example Sentences

To highlight them, Frum believes, would have been to make the book less amusing and more sombre.

From The Daily Beast

His eyes became more sombre, looked suddenly as if even their material weight must have increased.

From Project Gutenberg

The more his kind wife exerted herself to comfort him, the more obstinately he persisted in maintaining his own sombre views.

From Project Gutenberg

In quiet shade the sombre valley lay,While all the little hills around were clothedWith the soft lustre of the dewy moon.

From Project Gutenberg

Thick clouds of smoke overcast the sky, shrouding the morning with sombre gray.

From Project Gutenberg

If you can stand a few hours of talk from an old smacksman you may hear a sombre litany of horror.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• boring
• flat
• ho-hum
• muted
• uninspired