melancholic

adjective

mel·​an·​chol·​ic ˌme-lən-ˈkä-lik How to pronounce melancholic (audio)
Synonyms of melancholic
1
: of, relating to, or subject to melancholy : depressed
2
: of or relating to melancholia
3
: tending to depress the spirits : saddening
melancholic noun

Synonyms of melancholic

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Examples of melancholic in a Sentence

she becomes quite melancholic when she reflects on all the lost opportunities of her life
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But for all of his music guaranteed to prod a melancholic moment, Taylor didn’t snub the buoyant offerings from his heady catalog. — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026 Kamali, who was born and raised in Germany, studied for her masters in London, and now resides in Paris as the creative director of Chloé, has the soft, melancholic presence of a Pre-Raphaelite muse. — José Criales-Unzueta, Vanity Fair, 31 Aug. 2026 In both cases, there is something at once magisterial and leadenly self-regarding about the melancholic rhythms of Cusk’s prose, with its stiff and stately syntax and its utter impatience with the real vagaries of difference. — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026 Later, another nerdy boy will fall prey to their antics, yet there’s no gruesome violence on sight, only a melancholic and ethereal exorcizing of the demons that plague Emily’s heart. — Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 20 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for melancholic

Word History

Etymology

Middle English malencolic, melancolyk "consisting of or caused by black bile, irascible, gloomy," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French melancolique, borrowed from Latin melancholicus, borrowed from Greek melancholikós, from melancholía "black bile, melancholy entry 1" + -ikos -ic entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of melancholic was in the 14th century

Rhymes for melancholic

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melancholia
melancholic
melancholily
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Cite this Entry

“Melancholic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/melancholic. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

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Medical Definition

melancholic

1 of 2 adjective
mel·​an·​chol·​ic ˌmel-ən-ˈkäl-ik How to pronounce melancholic (audio)
1
: of, relating to, or subject to melancholy : depressed
2
: of or relating to melancholia

melancholic

2 of 2 noun
1
: a melancholy person
2
: melancholiac
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