elegiac en · ADJ
Pronunciation
- /ˌɛlɪˈd͡ʒaɪək/ (UK)
- /ˌɛlɪˈd͡ʒaɪˌæk/ (UK)
- /ɪˈlid͡ʒiˌæk/ (US)
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˌɛləˈd͡ʒaɪək/ (US)
- /ˌɛləˈd͡ʒaɪˌæk/ (US)
Etymology
From Middle French élégiaque, from Latin elegīacus, from Ancient Greek ἐλεγειακός (elegeiakós).
Meanings
-
Of or relating to an elegy.
the elegiac distich or couplet, consisting of a dactylic hexameter and pentameter
-
Expressing sorrow or mourning.
And elegiac griefs, and songs of love,
1856, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, “First Book”, in Aurora Leigh, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published 1857, →OCLC, page 36:Hast thou no elegiac verse / For Brunswick's venerable hearse, / What! not a line, a tear, a sigh, / When valour bleeds for liberty?
1808 February 22, Walter Scott, “Introduction to Canto Third: To William Erskine, Esq.”, in Marmion; a Tale of Flodden Field, Edinburgh: […] J[ames] Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable and Company, […]; London: William Miller, and John Murray, →OCLC, stanza III, page 119:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| most elegiac | Degree=Sup | lexicographic | |
| more elegiac | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| elegaic | alternative | lexicographic |
Deriveds
elegiac pentameter · elegiac couplet · unelegiac · elegiacally · elegiacal
Synonyms
heavy-hearted · infelicitous · sombre · miserable · melancholic · sullen · threnetical · gloomy · Plutonian · heartsick · dismal · woebegone · dejected · morose · joyless · passionate · lumpish · downsome · inconsolable · elegiac · mopey · disheartened · crestfallen · jawfallen · bummed out · unhappy · woeful · woe · threnetic · shattered · downcast · dispirited · down · moody · querulous · saddened · uncheery · glum · depressed · forlorn · unlively · sorrowful · unconsolable · elegious · uncheerful · cut up · spiritless · doleful · sorrow-ridden · mournful · chopfallen · down in the mouth · melancholy · despondent · saturnine · ruthful · chapfallen · mournful · tristful · disgruntled · cheerless · blue · triste · grieving · wistful · lugubrious · down in the dumps · dolesome · downhearted · grief-stricken · wretched · lamentful · solemn · sad · damp · sorrowful · low-spirited · atrabiliary · dull · plaintive · blitheless · low · disconsolate · heartsore · sorrowsome · atrabilious · Plutonic · lachrymose
Translations (16)
nb elegisk (of or relating to an elegy) · gl elexíaco (of or relating to an elegy) · es elegíaco (of or relating to an elegy) · es elegiaco (of or relating to an elegy) · ro elegiac (of or relating to an elegy) · ca elegíac (of or relating to an elegy) · ka ელეგიური (of or relating to an elegy) · it elegiaco (of or relating to an elegy) · pl elegiacki (of or relating to an elegy) · bg елегичен (of or relating to an elegy) · fr élégiaque (of or relating to an elegy) · pl elegijny (of or relating to an elegy) · pt elegíaco (of or relating to an elegy) · fi eleginen (of or relating to an elegy) · de elegisch (of or relating to an elegy) · mk елегиски (of or relating to an elegy)