1
as in mournful
expressing or suggesting mourning
a plangent, haunting song about a long-ago love
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in loud
marked by a high volume of sound
plangent organ music filled the church
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in ringing
marked by conspicuously full and rich sounds or tones
the strong, plangent tones of a Louis Armstrong trumpet solo
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of plangent
The composer Ralph Vaughan Williams, that warhorse of English traditionalism, is mentioned six times, and his plangent music—invoking a lost, idyllic England; a greener, more pleasant land—could easily be the novel’s soundtrack.
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Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
The Tokyo composer and guitarist riffs on themes of real and imagined memories and the passage of time in plangent compositions replete with airy tones, childlike melodies, and molasses-thick smears of resonant harmony.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 6 Oct. 2023
Indeed the music, with its banging, techno-style beats looped against plangent piano, analogizes Jamal’s predicament rather perfectly.
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 25 Mar. 2023
The piercing sense of place that Samuel D. Hunter brings to his work, the majority of it set in his home state of Idaho, has perhaps never been accompanied by such plangent notes of sorrow as in his new play, Greater Clements.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Dec. 2019
Image The pool party is a squirmy tour de force embellished with a punctuating zoom and a plangent sense of dread that make Kayla’s isolation feel like alienation.
—Bo Burnham, New York Times, 11 July 2018
Though a handful of tracks feature plangent cello by Katinka Kleijn (a member of the CSO and ICE), who shades the chord changes and enriches the interplay, most of the album is just two guitars ringing out with relaxed, natural beauty.
—Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 12 Oct. 2017
Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
The Tokyo composer and guitarist riffs on themes of real and imagined memories and the passage of time in plangent compositions replete with airy tones, childlike melodies, and molasses-thick smears of resonant harmony.
—Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 6 Oct. 2023
Indeed the music, with its banging, techno-style beats looped against plangent piano, analogizes Jamal’s predicament rather perfectly.
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 25 Mar. 2023
The piercing sense of place that Samuel D. Hunter brings to his work, the majority of it set in his home state of Idaho, has perhaps never been accompanied by such plangent notes of sorrow as in his new play, Greater Clements.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Dec. 2019
Image The pool party is a squirmy tour de force embellished with a punctuating zoom and a plangent sense of dread that make Kayla’s isolation feel like alienation.
—Bo Burnham, New York Times, 11 July 2018
Though a handful of tracks feature plangent cello by Katinka Kleijn (a member of the CSO and ICE), who shades the chord changes and enriches the interplay, most of the album is just two guitars ringing out with relaxed, natural beauty.
—Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 12 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plangent
Adjective
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Her observations as a woman once romantically involved with the two of them at the same time, confirm their masculine inability to speak their feelings out loud unless they are veiled in mournful songs.Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 28 Nov. 2024
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Very few directors working today can put across a movie like Gladiator II as convincingly, which perhaps explains why the sequel — for all its barbaric violence and the plaintive, at times stirring, discussions about justice and democracy — doesn’t have the mournful quality that the first film did.Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 22 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Mangione’s previous appearance in court included a loud outburst when he was lead into the building, but this morning’s proceedings went quietly and Mangione seemed in good spirits.Baltimore Sun staff, Baltimore Sun, 19 Dec. 2024
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The sheer size of the crowds in Tampa and Philly made those two of the loudest crowd pops of her career, but Bayley said the depth of the story with Damage CTRL also added to the reactions — and to her own pride in accomplishment.Jay Reddick, Orlando Sentinel, 18 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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His ringing, carefree laugh mixed with soaring rhetoric about democracy, working families and hope.Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 7 Aug. 2024
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Frey’s slow strumming and ringing, open chords add a country feel to what is, at its essence, an R&B waltz, and Meisner’s walking bass line summons a bluegrass feel.Rob Tannenbaum, Los Angeles Times, 28 July 2023
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.David Mamet, National Review, 11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.Helen Shaw, Vulture, 8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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Zoom out: While these protests may be vociferous, there's an equally deafening volume of grievances the SEC sees.Hope King, Axios, 28 Oct. 2024
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McBride’s defense turned into offense that later induced more deafening pops from The Garden crowd.Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 23 Apr. 2024
Adjective
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For popular half-day hikes, popular jaunts include the Smith Spring Trail (around two miles round-trip), Devil’s Hall Trail (around 4 miles round-trip), or McKittrick Canyon Trail (between 5 and 7 miles round-trip).Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 29 Dec. 2024
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In green and in red, and even in gold, Skinny and round, wispy and bold.Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 20 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Dido, after her lover Aeneas deserts her, kills herself with his sword on a funeral pyre, but not before building an effigy of him to burn alongside her.Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 2 Dec. 2024
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The Associated Press reported that the funeral location was not made public in advance to prevent a large crowd from gathering.Nardine Saad, Los Angeles Times, 20 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Like, watched it all the way through from the shrill opening filled with obnoxious kids to the leadenly staged slapstick climax?Keith Phipps, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
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Further down the road, another piper — just playing to play — is sending his shrill notes out into the night sky.Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, The Athletic, 5 July 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near plangent
Cite this Entry
“Plangent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plangent. Accessed 4 Jan. 2025.
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