Sadness Once Meant Being Full
Sadness is the feeling of sorrow. The Old English word behind it meant sated or weary, and the sense of grief came later.
Sadness is the state of feeling sorrow. The word travelled a strange road: Old English *sæd* meant sated or full, related to Latin *satis*, enough. Full became weary, weary became grave, and grave became sorrowful — so *sad* and *satisfy* are distant relatives.
- The feeling of sorrow. *A deep sadness.*
- Something regrettable. *The sadness of it.*
- Sad — sorrowful, or in informal use, pitiful. *That is just sad.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | sadness | Quiet sadness. |
| Adjective | sad | A sad film. |
| Adverb | sadly | Sadly, he declined. |
| Verb | sadden | It saddened her. |
| Related | sorrow | Deep sorrow. |
How it is used in a sentence
- There was a sadness about the place.Uncountable.
- Sadly, the shop has closed.Sentence adverb meaning regrettably.
- He looked sad rather than angry.The adjective.
Degrees of sorrow
- Sadness — the general feeling
- Sorrow — deeper and more formal
- Grief — sorrow after a loss
- Melancholy — a settled, reflective sadness
- Depression — a clinical condition, not simply strong sadness
From Old English *sæd*, sated or weary, from a root meaning full — the same root as Latin *satis*, enough, which gives *satisfy* and *satiate*.
Is sadness the same as depression?
No. Sadness is an emotion, usually with a cause and an end. Depression is a medical condition affecting mood, energy, sleep and thought.
Are sad and satisfy related?
Distantly. Both go back to a root meaning full or enough. Sad passed from sated through weary to sorrowful.