variants
or less commonly tragical
1
a
: regrettably serious or unpleasant : deplorable, lamentable
a tragic mistake
b
: marked by a sense of tragedy
2
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
the tragic significance of the atomic bomb—
H. S. Truman
H. S. Truman3
a
: dealing with or treated in tragedy
the tragic hero
b
: appropriate to or typical of tragedy
Synonyms
Examples of tragic in a Sentence
Their deaths were tragic and untimely.
They both died in a tragic car accident.
Romeo and Juliet's tragic love affair.
We saw a tragic play about a man with AIDS.
the tragic characters of her novel
Recent Examples on the Web
Fashion is tragic Most Popular At one point, Beckham lays bare one of fashion’s most uncomfortable truisms: that looking effortless is, in fact, code for ‘This outfit involved a lot of thought’.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 17 Apr. 2024
Defense attorney Tony Moss acknowledged the jury verdict during Tuesday’s closing argument, but compared Holton to the tragic Othello, a Shakespearean military commander who killed his wife in a fit of jealous rage.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
Ishido sends assassins to kidnap Mariko, breaking the couple's slumber and leading to a tragic end.
—Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 17 Apr. 2024
Her tragic life, which included spending the last decades of her life in an asylum, has been immortalized on film by Isabelle Adjani opposite Gerard Depardieu in 1988’s Camille Claudel, and again by Juliette Binoche in 2013’s Camille Claudel 1915.
—Jordan Riefe, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Apr. 2024
Wide Open Spaces and the Notorious B.I.G.'s 1994 debut Ready to Die — his sole full-length release before his tragic 1997 death.
—Jack Irvin, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Jóhannesson, who tells a story about his father’s tragic attempt to cook the family dinner on strike day.
—Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 Apr. 2024
This is the tragic feature of American life: that seemingly inescapable petulance and moral fatigue that leads so many to put aside efforts to make real the promises of American democracy and, instead, find comfort and safety in the idea that this country belongs only to white people.
—Eddie S. Glaude Jr., TIME, 15 Apr. 2024
The legendary ska group first disbanded following the tragic death of lead singer Bradley Nowell in 1996.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 17 Apr. 2024
Defense attorney Tony Moss acknowledged the jury verdict during Tuesday’s closing argument, but compared Holton to the tragic Othello, a Shakespearean military commander who killed his wife in a fit of jealous rage.
—Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, 17 Apr. 2024
Ishido sends assassins to kidnap Mariko, breaking the couple's slumber and leading to a tragic end.
—Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 17 Apr. 2024
Her tragic life, which included spending the last decades of her life in an asylum, has been immortalized on film by Isabelle Adjani opposite Gerard Depardieu in 1988’s Camille Claudel, and again by Juliette Binoche in 2013’s Camille Claudel 1915.
—Jordan Riefe, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Apr. 2024
Wide Open Spaces and the Notorious B.I.G.'s 1994 debut Ready to Die — his sole full-length release before his tragic 1997 death.
—Jack Irvin, Peoplemag, 16 Apr. 2024
Jóhannesson, who tells a story about his father’s tragic attempt to cook the family dinner on strike day.
—Leo Barraclough, Variety, 16 Apr. 2024
This is the tragic feature of American life: that seemingly inescapable petulance and moral fatigue that leads so many to put aside efforts to make real the promises of American democracy and, instead, find comfort and safety in the idea that this country belongs only to white people.
—Eddie S. Glaude Jr., TIME, 15 Apr. 2024
The legendary ska group first disbanded following the tragic death of lead singer Bradley Nowell in 1996.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tragic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near tragic
Cite this Entry
“Tragic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tragic. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tragic
adjective
trag·ic
ˈtraj-ik 
1
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
2
: dealing with or appearing in tragedy
a tragic hero
3
: very unfortunate : deplorable
a tragic mistake
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