What does wistful mean?
Wistful means Full of longing or yearning..
Wistful
/ˈwɪstfəl/ · adjective
Meaning
Full of longing or yearning..
Definitions by Sense
- Full of longing or yearning.
- Sad and thoughtful.
Example Sentences
His eyes grew wistful as he recalled his university days.
Her grey eyes, looking out on the violet of the night sky, the trees, and the crowd of hilarious onlookers who had not been invited to Buckingham Palace, had a patient and wistful expression.
There are few sights that leave a railway lover more wistful than a desolate railway viaduct no longer carrying tracks. As with tunnels, so much effort was made to conquer the landscape, yet so many now stand forlorn.
Synonyms for wistful
Antonyms for wistful
Related Words
Word Forms
- more wistful
- most wistful
Usage Notes
Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.
Practice and Learn More
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a synonym for wistful?
Common synonyms include desirous, yearnful, despondent, unhappy.
What is the opposite of wistful?
The opposite depends on the specific sense.
How do you use wistful in a sentence?
His eyes grew wistful as he recalled his university days.
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.