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An anodyne is a medicine that soothes or relieves pain.
The adjective blithe indicates that someone does something casually or in a carefree fashion without much concern for the end result; as a result, they are happy and lighthearted.
Someone in a buoyant mood is in good spirits.
Someone who is dour is serious, stubborn, and unfriendly; they can also be gloomy.
Someone who is ebullient is filled with enthusiasm, very happy, and extremely excited about something.
An effervescent individual is lively, very happy, and enthusiastic.
An elegy is a poem or other piece of writing expressing sadness; it is often about someone who has died.
A eulogy is a speech or other piece of writing, often part of a funeral, in which someone or something is highly praised.
If you show exuberance, you display great excitement, energy, and enthusiasm.
An idyll is a place or situation that is extremely pleasant, peaceful, and has no problems.
Someone who is jocular is cheerful and often makes jokes or tries to make people laugh.
If someone is lugubrious, they are looking very sad or gloomy.
If you describe something as moribund, you imply that it is no longer effective; it may also be coming to the end of its useful existence.
Someone who is morose is unhappy, bad-tempered, and unwilling to talk very much.
A plaintive sound or voice expresses sadness.
Plangent sounds are loud and tend to suggest sadness.
A requiem is a mass at a funeral or a piece of music written for the dead.
A scintillating conversation, speech, or performance is brilliantly clever, interesting, and lively.
A whimsical idea or person is slightly strange, unusual, and amusing rather than serious and practical.
Someone who is zealous spends a lot of time, energy, and effort to support something— notably that of a political or religious nature—because they believe in it very strongly.
Noun
dirge
durj
Context
As the four brothers carried the coffin out of the church, the organist played a sad and measured dirge. The four men in black walked in slow time to the organ’s sorrowful dirge as they carried the body of their beloved deceased friend. A large gathering of mourners slowly walked behind the coffin as the dirge played on and filled the air with the funeral song that only aided in helping tears flow.
Quiz:Try again!
Which of these lyrics is most likely part of a dirge?
“We shall come rejoicing, bringing in the sheaves.”
“How our hearts ache with grief as we say goodbye.”
“O beautiful for spacious skies, for amber waves of grain.”
Dirge Urge I don't know why, but after I failed three tests on one horrible day I had this incredible urge to play a dirge on my guitar, and so I quickly gave in to my dirge urge--soon mournful sounds began filling my room.
Examples
The petals drift; she is weary; and soon the darkness falls. / A nightingale is singing a dirge for the death of spring, / And moonlight steals through the casement and dapples the silent walls.
— Cao Xueqin, 18th century Chinese writer
The young musicians making a name for themselves busking on the streets in the French Quarter are gone. Jazz funerals where mourners send off loved ones with a slow dirge and then an uplifting rendition of “When the Saints Go Marching In” are over.
—
PBS News Hour
"Britain’s national anthem is something of an embarrassment in a modern age, not least because of the dirge-like tune," he said.
—
The Independent
The "first line" comprises the casket, family and close friends and a band with parade-friendly—that is, portable —instrumentation: bass and snare drums and horns. The second line is the group of onlookers that follows, walking first to the somber rhythm of a dirge, and then, after the body is "cut loose" at the cemetery, dancing to a joyous, upbeat brass-band whomp.
—
NPR
Word Ingredients
The original dirge was based upon a verse from the fifth Psalm (a lament), which begins Dirige, Domine “Direct, o Lord…;” dirge is simply a variation of that frequently used first word Dirige.
Word Theater
James Bond This funeral march features a Dixieland dirge for the dearly departed.
The panel shows a small video clip of either the word in actual use or a scene that represents the meaning of a word. This not only breaks up the monotony of studying words but also provides another avenue to strengthen word meaning. Enjoy!
