Unhappiness — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective noun /ˌən-ˈha-pē/ un·hap·py

Meaning & Definition of Unhappiness

Unhappiness (adjective)

  1. not cheerful or glad, sad, wretched —often used with with, about, or that
  2. causing or involving feelings of sadness, not pleasant or joyful
  3. not fortunate, unlucky

Unhappiness (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a state or spell of low spirits

    "with time the young woman got over the unhappiness caused by the breakup"

    similar: blue devils, blues, dejection, depression, desolation, despond, despondence, despondency, disconsolateness, dispiritedness, doldrums, dolefulness, downheartedness, dreariness, dumps, forlornness, gloom, gloominess, glumness, heartsickness, joylessness, melancholy, miserableness, mopes, mournfulness, oppression, sadness, sorrowfulness
    related: melancholia, self-pity, anguish, dolor, grief, mourning, somberness, sorrow, woefulness, agony, distress, pain, misery, woe, wretchedness, discouragement, disheartenment, moodiness, despair, desperation, hopelessness, self-despair, boredom, ennui, tedium, dismalness, drear, morbidness, moroseness, morosity, regret, rue
    opposite: bliss, blissfulness, ecstasy, elatedness, elation, euphoria, exhilaration, exuberance, exultation, felicity, gladness, gladsomeness, happiness, heaven, intoxication, joy, joyfulness, joyousness, jubilation, rapture, rapturousness
    near: gaiety, gayness, glee, gleefulness, humor, jollity, joviality, lightheartedness, merriment, mirth, mirthfulness, cheer, cheerfulness, cheeriness, hopefulness, optimism, sunniness, content, contentedness, contentment, satisfaction, delight, gratification

Related Entry: Unhappy (adjective)

Unhappy is a different word from Unhappiness. The synonyms below are for unhappy, not for unhappiness.

  1. feeling unhappiness

    "he's been unhappy ever since his family's move, which took him away from all his friends"

    similar: bad, blue, brokenhearted, cast down, crestfallen, dejected, depressed, despondent, disconsolate, doleful, down, down in the mouth, downcast, downhearted, droopy, forlorn, gloomy, glum, hangdog, heartbroken, heartsick, heartsore, heavyhearted, inconsolable, joyless, low, low-spirited, melancholic, melancholy, miserable, mournful, sad, saddened, sorrowful, sorry, woebegone, woeful, wretched
    related: aggrieved, distressed, troubled, uneasy, unquiet, upset, worried, despairing, hopeless, sunk, disappointed, discouraged, disheartened, dispirited, suicidal, dolorous, lachrymose, lugubrious, plaintive, tearful, regretful, rueful, agonized, anguished, grieving, wailing, weeping, black, bleak, cheerless, comfortless, dark, darkening, depressing, desolate, dismal, drear, dreary, elegiac, funereal, gray, morbid, morose, murky, saturnine, somber, sullen
    opposite: blissful, buoyant, buoyed, cheerful, cheery, chipper, delighted, glad, gladdened, gladsome, gleeful, happy, joyful, joyous, jubilant, sunny, upbeat
    near: ecstatic, elated, enraptured, entranced, euphoric, exhilarated, exuberant, exultant, overjoyed, rapturous, rhapsodic, blithe, blithesome, jocose, jocular, jocund, jolly, jovial, lightsome, merry, mirthful, excited, thrilled, hopeful, optimistic, rosy, sanguine, encouraged, heartened, animated, bouncing, energetic, frisky, jaunty, lively, peppy, perky, spirited, sprightful, sprightly, springy, vital, vivacious, zippy, content, gratified, pleased, satisfied, beaming, grinning, laughing, smiling, boon, carefree, careless, cavalier, devil-may-care, easygoing, happy-go-lucky, insouciant, lighthearted, unconcerned

  2. having, prone to, or marked by bad luck

    "she's trying to forget that whole unhappy attempt to start a business"

    similar: hapless, hard-luck, ill-fated, ill-starred, jinxed, luckless, snakebit, star-crossed, unfortunate, unlucky
    related: adverse, ill, inauspicious, unfavorable, unpromising, untoward, calamitous, catastrophic, disastrous, accursed, damned, doomed, tragic
    opposite: fortunate, happy, lucky
    near: blessed, favored, gifted, privileged, auspicious, fair, favorable, golden, promising, propitious

  3. not appropriate for a particular occasion or situation

    "a guest unintentionally made unhappy reference to what is a painful situation for the family"

    similar: amiss, graceless, improper, inapposite, inappropriate, inapt, incongruous, incorrect, indecorous, inept, infelicitous, malapropos, perverse, unapt, unbecoming, unfit, unseemly, unsuitable, untoward, wrong, out of place, out of the way
    related: inopportune, unfortunate, unseasonable, untimely, extraneous, immaterial, inapplicable, irrelative, irrelevant, misbecoming, mismatched, incompatible, inconsistent, uncongenial, bad, naughty, sinful, blamable, blameworthy, censurable, banned, barred, disallowed, forbidden, interdicted, outlawed, prohibited, proscribed, awkward, gauche, ungraceful, unacceptable, unsatisfactory
    opposite: appropriate, becoming, befitting, correct, decorous, felicitous, fit, fitting, genteel, happy, meet, proper, right, seemly, suitable
    near: fortunate, opportune, seasonable, timely, applicable, apposite, apropos, apt, germane, material, pat, pointed, relative, relevant, compatible, congenial, harmonious, allowed, authorized, permitted, approved, endorsed, kosher, licensed, sanctioned, abetted, encouraged, promoted, supported, acceptable, adequate, all right, decent, fine, OK, passable, respectable, satisfactory, tolerable, commendable, creditable, exemplary, blameless, irreproachable, balanced, companionate, congruous, consonant

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Unhappiness

The most common words with a similar meaning to Unhappiness:

blue devils, blues, dejection, depression, desolation, despond, despondence, despondency, disconsolateness, dispiritedness, doldrums, dolefulness, downheartedness, dreariness, dumps, forlornness, gloom, gloominess, glumness, heartsickness, joylessness, melancholy, miserableness, mopes, mournfulness, oppression, sadness, sorrowfulness

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Unhappiness

Words with the opposite meaning of Unhappiness:

bliss, blissfulness, ecstasy, elatedness, elation, euphoria, exhilaration, exuberance, exultation, felicity, gladness, gladsomeness, happiness, heaven, intoxication, joy, joyfulness, joyousness, jubilation, rapture, rapturousness

Related Words for Unhappiness

melancholia, self-pity, anguish, dolor, grief, mourning, somberness, sorrow, woefulness, agony, distress, pain, misery, woe, wretchedness, discouragement, disheartenment, moodiness, despair, desperation, hopelessness, self-despair, boredom, ennui, tedium, dismalness, drear, morbidness, moroseness, morosity

Near Antonyms of Unhappiness

gaiety, gayness, glee, gleefulness, humor, jollity, joviality, lightheartedness, merriment, mirth, mirthfulness, cheer, cheerfulness, cheeriness, hopefulness, optimism, sunniness, content, contentedness, contentment, satisfaction, delight, gratification

Word Forms of Unhappiness

Derived words: unhappiness (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Unhappiness

First known use: 14th century

Frequently Asked Questions about Unhappiness

What does "Unhappiness" mean?

"Unhappiness" means not cheerful or glad, sad, wretched —often used with with, about, or that. As an an adjective and a noun, it is defined as: not cheerful or glad, sad, wretched —often used with with, about, or that.

What is another word for "Unhappiness"?

Other words for "Unhappiness" include blue devils, blues, dejection, depression, desolation, despond, despondence and despondency. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Unhappiness" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Unhappiness"?

There are 60 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Unhappiness". Common alternatives include blue devils, blues, dejection, depression, desolation, despond, despondence, despondency, disconsolateness and dispiritedness.

What is the opposite of "Unhappiness"?

Antonyms of "Unhappiness" include bliss, blissfulness, ecstasy, elatedness, elation, euphoria, exhilaration and exuberance. Near antonyms include gaiety, gayness, glee and gleefulness.

How do you use "Unhappiness" in a sentence?

Examples of "Unhappiness" in a sentence: "with time the young woman got over the unhappiness caused by the breakup".

Is "Unhappiness" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Unhappiness" can be used as an adjective and a noun, depending on the context.

How do you pronounce "Unhappiness"?

"Unhappiness" is pronounced /ˌən-ˈha-pē/ and divided into syllables as un·hap·py.

What is the origin of the word "Unhappiness"?

First known use: 14th century.