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PlainSpell

gloomy

/ˈɡlumi/adjective, noun

gloomy is spelled G-L-O-O-M-Y: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.5 times per million words in written English, the 17,342nd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, gloomy means “Not very illuminated; dim because of darkness, especially when appearing depressing or frightening” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in gloomy?

Letters6: G-L-O-O-M-Y
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing2.5 times per million words; the 17,342nd most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Rhymes with

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is gloomy?

Gloomy appears 2.5 times per million words in written English, the 17,342nd most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce gloomy?

  • UK /ˈɡluːmi/
  • US /ˈɡlumi/

Gloomy has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-gloomy.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with gloomy?

3 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as gloomy from its last stressed vowel (/umi/):

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

Forms of gloomy

  • gloomier comparative
  • gloomiest superlative
  • gloomies plural

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does gloomy mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

adjective

  1. 1

    Not very illuminated; dim because of darkness, especially when appearing depressing or frightening.

    The cavern was gloomy.

  2. 2

    Suffering from gloom; melancholy; dejected.

    a gloomy temper or countenance

noun

  1. 1

    informalSomeone or something that is gloomy or pessimistic.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Gloomy in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchlugubre, sombre, terne (imperfectly illuminated), maussade, mélancolique (affected with, or expressing, gloom; melancholy)
Germandüster, finster, trübe, dunkel, trüb (imperfectly illuminated)
Portugueseescuro, obscuro (imperfectly illuminated), triste, melancólico, pessimista, lôbrego (affected with, or expressing, gloom; melancholy)
Spanishlóbrego (imperfectly illuminated), tétrico, luctuoso (affected with, or expressing, gloom; melancholy)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does gloomy come from?

From gloom + -y. Cognate with Saterland Frisian glumig (“dark, gloomy”).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What to look up after gloomy