sad

Meanings

1. Feeling sorrow or unhappiness.
2. Causing sorrow, or showing it.

Example sentences

• "I was sad when my friend moved away."

  Level A1, Meaning 1

• "That is a sad story, but it has a happy end."

  Level A2, Meaning 2

• "She looked sad and tired after the long trip."

  Level A2, Meaning 1

• "It makes me sad to see so much rubbish on the beach."

  Level B1, Meaning 1

Synonyms and antonyms

Look-alikes and common mistakes

• unhappy : Unhappy is a more general state, such as being unhappy in a job. Sad is often about one event, such as sad news.

Word family and forms

Forms: sadder, saddest

Word partners

Words and phrases that often go with "sad".

• feel sad
• a sad story
• sad news
• sad eyes
• look sad
• sad to say

Idioms and phrases

sadder but wiser

Less hopeful, but more sensible, after a bad experience.

"After losing his money he was sadder but wiser."

a sad state of affairs

A bad and disappointing situation.

"The state of the old playground is a sad state of affairs."

Origin

Sad comes from Old English sæd, which first meant full, satisfied or tired of something. Over time the meaning moved through serious to sorrowful.

Checked against: Wiktionary, the free dictionary, Merriam-Webster Dictionary, Dictionary.com.

How to remember it

Sad rhymes with bad, glad and mad, which are all short feeling words, so learn them together.

Test yourself

Learn next at A1

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