See Also: dismal(1)(dictionary)
dismal(2)(dictionary)
dismal(dictionary)
Dismal Swamp(encyclopedia)

dismal(1) (iou)



dismal adjective. LME.
[from DISMAL noun I.]
Designating each of the 24 evil or unlucky days of the medieval calendar. obsolete exc. Hist. LME.
Spenser An ugly feend, more fowle than dismall day.
gen. Boding or bringing misfortune and disaster; malign. L16-M17.
Of the nature of misfortune or disaster; calamitous. Now rare. L16.
Orig., causing dismay, dreadful. Now, causing gloom, depressing; sombre, dreary, cheerless. L16.
dismal Desmond a toy dog with drooping ears; colloq. a gloomy person. dismal Jimmy colloq. a gloomy person. dismal science joc. & colloq. economics.
W. Irving The sight of this wreck..gave rise to many dismal anecdotes. E. F. Benson Minorca..had been a dismal failure. H. Keller The weather has been awfully dismal. D. H. Lawrence The sea was grey and shaggy and dismal.
Exhibiting or expressing gloom. E18.
G. Burnet Wrote dismal letters to the Court. W. Irving The warriors returned, in dismal procession.
Feeble; inept. colloq. M20.
Economist Galsworthy's dismal efforts at working-class descriptions.
dis'mality noun dismal quality or state; an instance of this: E18.
dismalize verb trans. make (more) dismal M18.
dismally adverb L16.
dismalness noun E17.