1
: the act of sorrowing
She is still in mourning for her dead husband.
2
a
: an outward sign (such as black clothes or an armband) of grief for a person's death
lots of people there, and only one man in full mourning—
Arnold Bennett
Arnold Bennett
b
: a period of time during which signs of grief are shown
after a long mourning, resume their ordinary dresses—Henry Reed
Henry ReedExamples of mourning in a Sentence
a day of national mourning
She is still in mourning for her dead husband.
The whole town was in mourning.
a period of deep mourning
His widow was dressed in mourning.
Recent Examples on the Web
And so the nation was only briefly united in mourning for the girls before their hometown of Southport was beset by violence as a group of mostly white men threw bottles and bricks at police officers and a mosque.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 4 Aug. 2024
The Turkish government, which does not consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization, is holding a day of mourning for Haniyeh on Friday.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 2 Aug. 2024
Activists declared Sunday a national day of mourning for Massey and gatherings were planned in New York, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Massey's home of Springfield, and elsewhere.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 29 July 2024
Maggie Steffens is in mourning after the sudden death of her sister-in-law, who came Paris to watch the water polo Olympian compete in the 2024 Summer Games.
—Lindsay Kimble, Peoplemag, 28 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for mourning 
Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 4 Aug. 2024
The Turkish government, which does not consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization, is holding a day of mourning for Haniyeh on Friday.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 2 Aug. 2024
Activists declared Sunday a national day of mourning for Massey and gatherings were planned in New York, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Massey's home of Springfield, and elsewhere.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 29 July 2024
Maggie Steffens is in mourning after the sudden death of her sister-in-law, who came Paris to watch the water polo Olympian compete in the 2024 Summer Games.
—Lindsay Kimble, Peoplemag, 28 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for mourning
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mourning.' 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 mourning
Cite this Entry
“Mourning.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mourning. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mourning
noun
mourn·ing
ˈmōr-niŋ 
ˈmȯr-
1
: the act of grieving
2
: an outward sign (as black clothes or a black arm band) of grief for a person's death
to wear mourning
3
: a period of time during which signs of grief are shown
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share