forlorn

CEFRC2

/fəˈlɔːn/

adjective · noun

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Very lonely, sad, and without hope.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Pitifully sad, wretched, miserable; lonely, especially from feeling abandoned, deserted, forsaken.

Examples

  • She and her uncle were sad and forlorn in their neglect and disgrace.

  • That is where this forlorn son was born.

At a glance

Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
5
Parts of speech
2
Citations
5
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

adjective

Extra meanings

  1. Unlikely to succeed; hopeless.

  2. Abandoned, deserted, left behind.

noun

Extra meaning

  1. A forlorn hope.

More examples

In context

  • She looks sorrowful and forlorn.

  • For miſerie doth braueſt mindes abate, / And make them ſeeke for that they wont to ſcorne, / Of fortune and of hope at once forlorne.

  • Some ſay that Rauens foſter forlorne children, / The vvhilſt their ovvne birds famiſh in their neſts: / Oh be to me though thy hard hart ſay no, / Nothing ſo kinde but ſomething pittifull.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

After his dog ran away, the boy felt completely blank and hopeless.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From Middle English forlorn, forloren, from Old English forloren (past participle of forlēosan (“to lose”)), from Proto-Germanic *fraluzanaz (“lost”), past participle of Proto-Germanic *fraleusaną (“to lose”), equivalent to for- + lorn. Cognate with West Frisian ferlern (“lost”), Saterland Frisian ferlädden (“lost”), Dutch verloren (“lost”), German Low German verloren (“lost”), German verloren (“lost”), Swedish förlorad (“lost”). See further at lese/leese, lorn.