Sombre Meaning
/ˈsɒmbə/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjDark; gloomy; shadowy, dimly lit.
adjDull or dark in colour or brightness.
Sentence Examples
Is black too sombre to wear in spring?
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old castle had a ____ atmosphere that made visitors feel uneasy.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She wore a ____ black dress to the memorial service to show her deep respect for the family.
Word Origin & History
Borrowed from French sombre (“dark”), from Old French sombre, from a verb *sombrer or Latin sub- + umbra. Compare Spanish sombra (“shade; dark part of a picture; ghost”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The lady led him into a sombre hallway and disappeared. A moment later the windowless chamber was illuminated by the entry of a heavenly creature emitting a radiance prone to pierce the heart of any youth exposed to it."
— 2015, Hermann Kauders, Before The Cock Crows, →ISBN, page 9:
"All three parallel valleys of the Llynvi, Garw and Ogmore are much the same in physical character: the lower reaches are wooded and not unattractive, but as the railway climbs on ever-steepening grades, the hills on either hand grow barer and closer together, while in all respects the scene becomes more sombre, with the terraced, slate-roofed colliery towns and the road, railway and river all struggling for space in the narrowing defiles."
— 1955 July, D. S. Barrie, “Railways of the Bridgend District”, in Railway Magazine, page 449:
"His tall and slender figure, dressed in sombre black, his hair of that peculiar reddish auburn so rarely seen, his flashing black eyes, in which a fitful fire seemed for ever burning; all combined to give something almost of a demoniac air ..."
— 1877, The Black Band; or, The Mysteries of Midnight, page 47:
"The dinner was silent and sombre; happily it was also short."
— 1845, B[enjamin] Disraeli, Sybil; or The Two Nations. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC:
"It was a wonder that he had not been a victim of the ferocious and summary executions which marked the course of that tyranny; for Guzman had ruled the country with the sombre imbecility of political fanaticism."
— 1904 January 29 – October 7, Joseph Conrad, Nostromo: A Tale of the Seaboard, London; New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers […], published 1904, →OCLC:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The old castle had a ____ atmosphere that made visitors feel uneasy.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She wore a ____ black dress to the memorial service to show her deep respect for the family.