CHEERLESS Synonyms: 115 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the adjective 'cheerless' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of cheerless are bleak , desolate , dismal , dreary , and gloomy . While all these words mean "devoid of cheer or comfort," cheerless stresses absence of anything cheering. // a drab and cheerless office

Q: When could 'bleak' be used to replace 'cheerless'?

The meanings of bleak and cheerless largely overlap; however, bleak suggests chill, dull, and barren characteristics that utterly dishearten. // the bleak years of the depression

Q: Where would 'desolate' be a reasonable alternative to 'cheerless'?

In some situations, the words desolate and cheerless are roughly equivalent. However, desolate adds an element of utter remoteness or lack of human contact to any already disheartening aspect. // a desolate outpost

Q: When is it sensible to use 'dismal' instead of 'cheerless'?

While in some cases nearly identical to cheerless , dismal indicates extreme and utterly depressing gloominess. // dismal weather

Q: When might 'dreary' be a better fit than 'cheerless'?

The synonyms dreary and cheerless are sometimes interchangeable, but dreary , often interchangeable with dismal , emphasizes discouragement resulting from sustained dullness or futility. // a dreary job

Q: When is 'gloomy' a more appropriate choice than 'cheerless'?

While the synonyms gloomy and cheerless are close in meaning, gloomy often suggests lack of hope or promise. // gloomy war news

cheerless

adjective

ˈchir-ləs

Definition of cheerless

as in bleak

causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer a dank and cheerless castle that was once the site of unspeakable horrors

Synonyms & Similar Words

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How does the adjective cheerless contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of cheerless are bleak, desolate, dismal, dreary, and gloomy. While all these words mean "devoid of cheer or comfort," cheerless stresses absence of anything cheering.

a drab and cheerless office

When could bleak be used to replace cheerless?

The meanings of bleak and cheerless largely overlap; however, bleak suggests chill, dull, and barren characteristics that utterly dishearten.

the bleak years of the depression

Where would desolate be a reasonable alternative to cheerless?

In some situations, the words desolate and cheerless are roughly equivalent. However, desolate adds an element of utter remoteness or lack of human contact to any already disheartening aspect.

a desolate outpost

When is it sensible to use dismal instead of cheerless?

While in some cases nearly identical to cheerless, dismal indicates extreme and utterly depressing gloominess.

dismal weather

When might dreary be a better fit than cheerless?

The synonyms dreary and cheerless are sometimes interchangeable, but dreary, often interchangeable with dismal, emphasizes discouragement resulting from sustained dullness or futility.

a dreary job

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than cheerless?

While the synonyms gloomy and cheerless are close in meaning, gloomy often suggests lack of hope or promise.

gloomy war news

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of cheerless The storm let up before daybreak, but the morning was gray and cheerless with a cold wind. — Elwyn "bud" Myers, Outdoor Life, 11 Mar. 2026 Gomez gestured across the street toward 100 Centre Street—the criminal courthouse, a cheerless Art Deco building the color of cinder blocks. — Sarah Lustbader, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025 Election polls may seem cheerless, inscrutable, and wrapped in data and murky terminology. — W. Joseph Campbell, Fortune, 29 Oct. 2024 Wedged between the cheerless skyscrapers of Third Avenue and an uncharming stretch of Second, just blocks north of the bro bars of Murray Hill, is a row of nine townhouses. — Adriane Quinlan, Curbed, 2 Aug. 2024 Their lives had been expended in cheerless labor, there wills broken, their intelligences numbed. — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 5 July 2024

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cheerless

Adjective

Unlike Gregor Samsa who is confined to his room after transforming into a huge insect, the protagonist still has to go to work, a dark and bleak absurdity that lays bare the alienation, isolation, and hypocrisy of modern life.

— Deadline, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
Providing a faint ray of hope in this otherwise bleak start to life, the five baby orangutans have been settling into their new surroundings in Odisha at the Nandankanan Zoo.

— Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of bleak

Adjective

Some are somber, like the single mom Mekko’s left in the lurch or a fellow journalist who prefers feel-good fluff pieces to muckraking.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
The trailer opens on the somber, grayscale world of London before entering the wild, psychedelic, and magical world of Narnia.

— Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of somber

Adjective

Nordic drama is still often associated internationally with crime, darker tones and a certain visual restraint.

— Marta Balaga, Variety, 14 Oct. 2026
Campaign images show close-fitting cycling jerseys paired with dark shorts, with prints ranging from yellow-green graphics to blue-and-white patterns.

— Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of dark

Adjective

There are concerted efforts to ban such devices, but they are still used with depressing frequency.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 12 Oct. 2026
Sunday’s 31-24 loss to Cincinnati – the latest miserable day during this depressing season - crystallized several issues that general manager Jon-Eric Sullivan and coach Jeff Hafley must navigate in the days and weeks ahead.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of depressing

Adjective

As filmmakers, they were drawn to the unexpected beauty of the desolate, postindustrial landscape.

— Kim Velsey, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2026
Obscenities, the referee’s whistle, and the thud of boots into balls—and sometimes shins—easily carry across these desolate fields.

— Vanda Mayer, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of desolate

Adjective

The spirituality throughout is imbued with a solemn reverence more Catholic than Baptist.

— Kiana Mickles, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
This production, solemn about our obligations to one another but committed to providing a good night out at the theater, is neither.

— Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of solemn

Browse Nearby Words

cheerleaders

cheerless

cheerlessly

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“Cheerless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cheerless. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of cheerless

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