solemn
Of or pertaining to religious ceremonies and ritesOf or pertaining to religious ceremonies and rites; (generally) religious in nature; sacred.
Recorded US: Dvortygirl, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
» The priest pretends to be solemn in public.
Der Priester gibt sich in der Öffentlichkeit feierlich. — Tamy
Tatoeba contributors · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
5 senses(specifically)Of or pertaining to religious ceremonies and rites; (generally) religious in nature; sacred.
свято́йsvjatój, свяще́нныйsvjaščénnyj
(broadly)Characterized by or performed with appropriate or great ceremony or formality.
feierlich
торже́ственныйtoržéstvennyj
урочи́стийuročýstyj
(broadly)Deeply serious and sombre; grave.
ernst
серьёзныйserʹjóznyj
(broadly)Inspiring serious feelings or thoughts; sombrely impressive.
(broadly, obsolete)Cheerless, gloomy, sombre.
мра́чныйmráčnyj
- characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions
- dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises
Examples
18 sentencesThe priest pretends to be solemn in public.
deDer Priester gibt sich in der Öffentlichkeit feierlich. — Tamy
The king addressed the court with solemn authority.
Roy looked solemn as I told him the story.
They watched the solemn ceremony in the church with awe.
A solemn wisp of smoke rose from the shattered city.
Translations
8 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 4
By meaning 2
Origin
From Middle English solempne, solemne (“performed with religious ceremony or reverence; deFrom Middle English solempne, solemne (“performed with religious ceremony or reverence; devoted to religious observances, sacred; ceremonious, formal; of a vow: made under a religious sanction, binding; religious celebration, celebration of a feast day; famous, well-known; important; grand, imposing; awe-inspiring, impressive; grave, serious; dignified; enunciated or held formally”) [and other forms], from Old French solempne, solemne (“serious, solemn”) [and other forms], or from its etymon Late Latin sōlempnis, sōlennis, from Latin sōlemnis, from sollemnis (“appointed, established, fixed; common, customary, ordinary, ritual, traditional, usual; ceremonial, religious, solemn; festive; annual, yearly”) [and other forms]. The further etymology is uncertain; sollus (“entire, whole”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *solh₂- (“whole”)) + epulum (“banquet, feast”) (in the sense of a ritual; perhaps ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₁ed- (“to eat”)) has been suggested.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
solemner/more solemn, solemnest/most solemn| Comparative | solemner / more solemn Lesson |
|---|---|
| Superlative | solemnest / most solemn Lesson |
regular
Synonyms
62 synonymsAntonyms
27 antonymsWord family
16 related wordsLessons for this word
2 lessons- A2Comparatives — Because it has a comparative form
- A2Superlatives — Because it has a superlative form
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.