Wistful — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

showing pensive sadness

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/wˈɪstfəl/

🇬🇧British English

/wˈɪstfəl/

🇮🇳Indian English

/wˈɪstfəl/

2 syllables Say it as /wˈɪstfəl/.

Examples

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

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

pensive

Parts of Speech

adjective

showing pensive sadness

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

Word Forms

pensiveness	noun	deep serious thoughtfulness
wistfulness	noun	a sadly pensive longing

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

wehmütig

zeigt nachdenkliche Traurigkeit

🇫🇷French

mélancolique

montrant une tristesse pensive

🇪🇸Spanish

anhelante

mostrando tristeza pensativa

🇮🇹Italian

malinconico

mostrando tristezza pensosa

🇳🇱Dutch

weemoedig

peinzend verdriet tonen

🇵🇹Portuguese

melancólico

mostrando tristeza pensativa

🇷🇺Russian

задумчивый

показывая задумчивую печаль

India

🇮🇳Hindi

उदास

गहन उदासी दिखा रहा है

🇧🇩Bengali

wisful

চিন্তাশীল দুঃখ দেখাচ্ছে

🇮🇳Tamil

ஏக்கமுள்ள

ஆழ்ந்த சோகத்தைக் காட்டுகிறது

🇮🇳Telugu

కోరికతో కూడిన

చికాకుతో కూడిన విచారాన్ని చూపుతోంది

🇮🇳Marathi

उत्सुक

चिंताग्रस्त दुःख दर्शवित आहे

🇮🇳Gujarati

ઉદાસીન

ચિંતિત ઉદાસી દર્શાવે છે

🇮🇳Kannada

ಕಾತರದಿಂದ

ಚಿಂತನಶೀಲ ದುಃಖವನ್ನು ತೋರಿಸುತ್ತಿದೆ

🇮🇳Malayalam

കൊതിപ്പിക്കുന്ന

ചിന്താപരമായ ദുഃഖം കാണിക്കുന്നു

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਇੱਛਾਵਾਨ

ਚਿੰਤਾਜਨਕ ਉਦਾਸੀ ਦਿਖਾ ਰਿਹਾ ਹੈ

🇵🇰Urdu

ہوشیار

فکر مند اداسی دکھا رہا ہے

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

渴望的

表现出沉思的悲伤

🇯🇵Japanese

物悲しい

物思いにふける悲しみを示す

🇰🇷Korean

탐내는

잠겨있는 슬픔을 보여주는

🇻🇳Vietnamese

đăm chiêu

thể hiện nỗi buồn trầm ngâm

🇹🇭Thai

โหยหา

แสดงความเศร้าครุ่นคิด

🇮🇩Indonesian

sedih

menunjukkan kesedihan yang termenung

🇵🇭Filipino

nagdadalamhati

nagpapakita ng nag-iisip na kalungkutan

🇲🇾Malay

sayu

menunjukkan kesedihan yang termenung

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

حزين

تظهر الحزن متأمل

🇮🇷Persian

هوس انگیز

نشان دادن اندوه متفکرانه

🇹🇷Turkish

hüzünlü

dalgın üzüntüyü gösteriyor

🇮🇱Hebrew

עַגמוּמִי

מראה עצב מהורהר

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'wistful'?

The primary meaning of 'wistful' is 'showing pensive sadness'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'wistful' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'wistful' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'wistful' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'wistful' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'wistful' in your daily reading?

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Do you find 'wistful' easy to spell?

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In your opinion, does the word 'wistful' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

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Which age group is most likely to use 'wistful' in regular conversations?

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How likely are you to use 'wistful' in a professional email?

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Would you classify 'wistful' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

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Slang

Archaic

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