woebegone

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 16, 2023 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>woebegone</strong> &#149; \WOH-bih-gahn\&nbsp; &#149; <em>adjective</em><br /> <p><em>Woebegone</em> describes someone or something that feels or shows great woe, sorrow, or misery. </p> <p>// The team never looked more <em>woebegone</em> than it did heading back to the locker room after losing the championship to their rivals by a single run. </p> <p>// Despite its <em>woebegone</em> appearance, the old mill town has a strong community and a vibrant arts scene.</p> <p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woebegone">See the entry ></a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>“It’s a classic pop formula: wed <em>woebegone</em> lyrics to bright sounds, drawing out all that’s entrancing about sadness. Peach Pit does it as well or better than most of their peers.” — Aarik Danielsen, <em>The Columbia (Missouri) Tribune</em>, 27 July 2023</p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/whoa">Whoa</a>, whoa, whoa. We know that, at first glance, <em>woebegone</em> looks like a word that has its meaning backwards; after all, if <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/begone"><em>begone</em></a> means “go away,” shouldn’t <em>woebegone</em> mean “devoid of woe,” or “happy”? Not exactly. The word comes from the Middle English phrase <em>wo begon</em>. The <em>wo</em> in this phrase does indeed mean “<a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woe">woe</a>,” but <em>begon</em> means “<a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beset">beset</a>.” Someone who is woebegone, therefore, is beset with woe. Since the mid-1700s, the word has also been used to describe things that appear to express sadness, as in “the woebegone look on his face when he misplaced his favorite dictionary.”</p> <br /