Mourn
/mɔrn/
verbB1
Definition
Mourn means to feel deep sadness and grief when someone dies or when something very important is lost. People often express mourning by crying, remembering, or doing special actions to honor the person or thing they lost.
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See It in Action
To feel and show sadness because of someone's death
- •The family mourned their grandfather for many weeks.
- •People around the world mourn the loss of important leaders.
- •She mourned quietly in her room after hearing the bad news.
To feel sorrow for a great loss or disappointment (less common)
- •The town mourned the closing of the old library.
- •Fans mourn the end of their favorite TV show.
Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "mourn" like "sad" but much stronger and connected to losing someone or something very important.
- ✓Picture a quiet room with people wearing dark clothes and looking thoughtful or crying.
- ✓It's the feeling when you miss someone who is gone and your heart hurts.
- ✓Sounds like "more-n" → imagine feeling you want "more" time with someone who is no longer here.
- ✓In stories, characters mourn by visiting graves or lighting candles to remember loved ones.
- ✓NOT like "cry" (which can happen for many reasons), "mourn" is sadness that lasts longer and is about loss.
- ✓NOT like "forget," mourn is about remembering and feeling the pain of loss.
- ✓NOT like "sad" (a general feeling), mourn is a special sadness because of death or big loss.
Try Other Words
- •Lament: to express sadness or regret loudly (Use when sadness is shown more by words or crying)
- •Bewail: to strongly express sorrow or regret (Use in formal or poetic contexts)
- •Sorrow: feeling deep sadness (Use when talking more about the feeling than the action)
- •Grieve: to feel deep sadness for loss (Use when focusing on inner feelings)
Unboxing
- •Word parts: (no prefix or suffix, root word "mourn")
- •Etymology: From Old English "murnan," meaning to grieve or feel sorrow
- •Historical development: Used since early English to describe sadness for death or loss
- •Modern usage: Commonly used to describe sadness and ceremonies after death or loss
- •Key insight: Always connected to loss and sadness, often with public or personal expression
Reflect & Connect
•How do different cultures show that they mourn someone who has died?
•Can you think of a time when you mourned something that was not a person?
Fill in the blanks
1.People mourn ___ the death of a loved one by holding funerals and remembering good times.
2.When someone mourns, they often feel ___ for a long time, not just a little sadness.
3.Unlike feeling sad for a small problem, to mourn means to feel ___ because of a big loss.
4.The community mourned together, showing their sadness ___ a public event.
5.You might mourn quietly or loudly, but it always involves ___ the person or thing lost.
6.To mourn is different from forgetting because it means you ___ the loss deeply.
7.After the accident, many people mourned ___ the sudden loss of their friend.