Solemn

Definition: Solemn

Solemn

Adjective

1. Dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises; "a grave God-fearing man"; "a quiet sedate nature"; "as sober as a judge"; "a solemn promise"; "the judge was solemn as he pronounced sentence".

2. Characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions; "both sides were deeply in earnest, even passionate"; "an entirely sincere and cruel tyrant"; "a film with a solemn social message".

Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
 

Date "solemn" was first used: sometime in the early 14th century. (references)

Etymology: Solemn \Sol"emn\, adjective. [from Old English expression solempne, Old French solempne, from Latin expression solemnis, solennis, sollemnis, sollennis; sollus all, entire annus year; properly, that takes place every year; -- used especially of religious solemnities. Compare to Silly, Annual.]. (references)

Literature

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Synonyms: Solemn

Affirmation

Pronunciative, affirmative, soi-disant; positive; certain; express, explicit; (patent); absolute, emphatic, flat, broad, round, pointed, marked, distinct, decided, confident, trenchant, dogmatic, definitive, formal, solemn, categorical, peremptory; unretracted; predicable.

Asseveration, adjuration, swearing, oath, affidavit; deposition; (record); avouchment; assurance; protest, protestation; profession; acknowledgment; (assent); legal pledge, pronouncement; solemn averment, solemn avowal, solemn declaration.

Dejection

Serious, sedate, staid, stayed; grave as a judge, grave as an undertaker, grave as a mustard pot; sober, sober as a judge, solemn, demure; grim; grim-faced, grim-visaged; rueful, wan, long-faced.

Importance

Grave, serious, earnest, noble, grand, solemn, impressive, commanding, imposing.

Ostentation

Solemn, stately, majestic, formal, stiff, ceremonious, punctilious, starched.

Mummery, solemn mockery, mouth honor.

Piety

Adjective: pious, religious, devout, devoted, reverent, godly, heavenly-minded, humble, pure, holy, spiritual, pietistic; saintly, saint-like; seraphic, sacred, solemn.

Repute

Great, dignified, proud, noble, honorable, worshipful, lordly, grand, stately, august, princely. imposing, solemn, transcendent, majestic, sacred, sublime, heaven-born, heroic, sans peur et sans reproche; sacrosanct.

Worship

Adjective: worshipping;Verb: devout, devotional, reverent, pure, solemn; fervid; (heartfelt).

Crosswords: Solemn

Albanian (gala, go to meeting, grave, solemn, state), German (ernst, feierlich), Romanian (exalted, festival, grave, impressive, solemn, state).

So have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah, a Krazy Kwanzaa, a Tip Top Tet, and a solemn, eventful Ramadan (The Simpsons; writing credit: Artur Brauner; Paul Hengge)

And now we're asked to believe that a piece of paper will take the place of missile sites and Polaris submarines, and that an enemy who hasn't honored one solemn treaty in the history of its existence will now, for our convenience, do precisely that (Seven Days in May; writing credit: Fletcher Knebel; Charles W. Bailey II)

At this solemn moment, in the presence of this tribunal, which is the representative of human justice, before France, before the whole world, I swear that Dreyfus is innocent (The Life of Emile Zola; writing credit: Matthew Josephson; Heinz Herald)

I give you my solemn wolf word (The 10th Kingdom; writing credit: Simon Moore)

McKinley Funeral -- In Solemn State (1901)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Books

• Come Before God: In Prayer and Solemn Feast (reference)

• In the Greatest Solemn Dignity: The Capitol's Four Cornerstones (052-071-01085-8) (reference)

• Order for the Solemn Exposition of the Holy Eucharist (reference)

• Russia: Broken Idols, Solemn Dreams (reference)

• Solemn Duty (reference)

  (more book examples)

Music

• Solemn Sun Setting (reference)

  (more classical music examples; more popular music examples)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

A military caisson, carrying the body of Medal of Honor recipient John L. Levitow makes the solemn journey through Arlington National Cemetery as the funeral procession follows. Levitow died Nov. 8 at his home in Connecticut after a lengthy battle with ca.

XXVIII International Eucharistic Congress, First General Meeting, Solemn Pontifical High Mass; His Eminence John Cardinal Bonzano, Celebrant; Choir, 60,000 parochial school children; Soldiers' Field, June 21, 1926, Chicago, Ill., U.S.A. Credit: Library of Congress.

Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

This legislative is not only the supreme power of the common-wealth, but sacred and unalterable in the hands where the community have once placed it; nor can any edict of any body else, in what form soever conceived, or by what power soever backed, have the force and obligation of a law, which has not its sanction from that legislative which the public has chosen and appointed: for without this the law could not have that, which is absolutely necessary to its being a law, the consent of the society, over whom no body can have a power to make laws, but by their own consent,* and by authority received from them; and therefore all the obedience, which by the most solemn ties any one can be obliged to pay, ultimately terminates in this supreme power, and is directed by those laws which it enacts: nor can any oaths to any foreign power whatsoever, or any domestic subordinate power, discharge any member of the society from his obedience to the legislative, acting pursuant to their trust; nor oblige him to any obedience contrary to the laws so enacted, or farther than they do allow; it being ridiculous to imagine one can be tied ultimately to obey any power in the society, which is not the supreme. (Second Treatise of Government)

If such be the real state of things, this is worse than solemn mockery. (reference)

In its decision the tribunal will be guided by the highest motives of international policy, with a view to vindicating the solemn obligations of international undertakings and the validity of international morality. (reference)

It is a solemn moment for the American Democracy. ("Iron Curtain" Speech)

For I have sworn before you and Almighty God the same solemn oath our forebears prescribed nearly a century and three quarters ago. (reference)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

All manner of solemn nonsense was talked on the subject, but I believed none of it.

In a hushed, solemn tone, with bowed head and clasped hands, she put her final question

He felt that it was tall and stately when it came beside him, and that its mysterious presence filled him with a solemn dread

Shortly afterwards, the like grisly sense of the humorous again stole in among the solemn phantoms of his thought

At those solemn words, (r)The Eternal Father in person could do nothing for you , she understood that her sentence was fixed

There was a skull on the desk and a strange solemn smell in the room like the old leather of chairs

On the 6th day of May, 1709 I took a solemn leave of his Majesty and all my friends

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references.

Expressions using "solemn": on such a solemn occasion ♦ probate in solemn form ♦ proof in solemn form ♦ solemn agreement ♦ solemn averment ♦ solemn avowal ♦ solemn countenance ♦ solemn declaration ♦ solemn form probate ♦ solemn League and Covenant ♦ solemn meeting ♦ solemn mockery ♦ solemn silence ♦ very solemn. Additional references.

Beginning with "solemn": solemn-faced.

Albanian

solemn (gala, go to meeting, grave, state), serioz (bad, crying, deep, demure, dress, earnest, grave, heavy, nasty, reliable, serious, weighty), i rëndë (arduous, artless, awkward, bad, bulky, burdensome, cubbish, cumbersome, cumbrous, dead, difficile, elephantine, grave, grievous, grinding, hard, heavy, hefty, incondite, knock about, leaden, lumping, massive, oafish, onerous, peremptory, plodding, ponderous, portly, serious, set up, severe, stertorous, stodgy, tricky, unwieldy, wakeless, weighty). (various references)

Arabic 

‏مهيب (august, awesome, awful, fearful, grand, imposing, magnificent, majestic, portly, sublime, venerable), ‏متزن (grave, sedate, self possessed, sober), ‏وقور (lordly, magisterial, proper, sedate, serious, sober, staid, thoughtful), ‏علني (overt, public, undisguised), ‏جليل (august, dignified, exalted, glorious, grand, grave, great, honorable, honourable, important, imposing, lofty, magnificent, portly, respectable, significant, splendid, stately, sublime, venerable), ‏إحتفالي (ceremonial, festive, pompous), ‏رسمي (authoritative, ceremonial, ceremonious, cocktail dress, dressed, formal, official, picturesque, starchy, state, stiff), ‏رصين (calm, equable, equal, sedate, serious, sober, sober minded, solid, staid, steady, thoughtful), ‏شعائري (ceremonial, ritual, ritualist, ritualistic). (various references)

Bulgarian 

сериозен (earnest, grave, heavy, intent, prayerful, sad, sage, sedate, serious, sober, somber, sombre, staid, steady, straight), церемониален (ceremonial, ceremonious), тържествен (grand, grandiloquent, grave, state, stately), тежък (cumbrous, dense, difficult, distressing, faint, grave, grievous, grinding, hammering, hard, heavy, hefty, high, hulking, labored, laborious, laboured, leaden, lumping, lumpish, lumpy, massive, massy, muggy, onerous, painful, plodding, ponderous, robust, rugged, sad, severe, shrewd, sledgehammer, slow, smart, smashing, soggy, sore, stiff, stodgy, taxing, thorny, tight, tough, traumatic, trying, unwieldy, uphill, weighty), важен (consequential, dignified, fatal, grave, importable, important, magisterial, major, material, mighty, necessitous, newsy, pompous, pontifical, portentous, prominent, sage, serious, significant, sounding, staple, substantial, top-line, weighty), официален (ceremonial, dress, dressy, formal, official, state), надут (bombastic, conceited, consequential, coxcombical, declamatory, florid, grandiloquent, haughty, high-blown, highfaluting, important, inflated, magniloquent, mandarin, mouthy, orotund, overblown, pompous, portentous, prancing, puffy, sidy, sounding, stilted, swelling, swollen, theatrical, tumid, uppish, uppity). (various references)

Chinese 

隆重 (ceremonious, grand, prosperous), 肃穆, 穆 , 嚴肅 (solemnity), �" (peaceful), 岸然 (serious), 儼然 (dignified, just like). (various references)

Czech

slavnostní (ceremonial, dressy, festive, formal), velebný (Reverend, sublime), vážný (austere, dangerous, earnest, good, grave, major, mellow, pensive, portly, serious, solid, stern, straight, strong, wistful), obřadný (ceremonious, ritual). (various references)

Danish

ved indsaettelsen i hvervet afgiver Kommissionens medlemmer en hoejtidelig forsikring,hvorefter (when entering upon their duties the members of the Commission shall give a solemn undertaking that), nægte at afgive forklaring,aflægge ed eller afgive den hertil svarende højtidelige erklæring (refuse to give evidence, to take the oath or to make a solemn affirmation equivalent thereto), højtideligt forsikre (solemn declaration), højtidelig forsikring (solemn undertaking), højtidelig erklæring (solemn affirmation, Solemn Declaration), erklæring svarende til edsaflæggelsen (solemn affirmation equivalent to an oath), en til edsaflæggelsen svarende erklæring (solemn affirmation equivalent to an oath). (various references)

Dutch

statig (ceremonious, majestic), plechtstatig (ceremonious, formal, majestic, measured, stiff), plechtig (ceremonious, formal, measured, stiff). (various references)

Esperanto

solena (ceremonious). (various references)

Farsi 

موقرانه , موقر (Demure, Grave, Sedate, Sober, Staid), گرفته (Dull, Eerie, Gruff, Hoarse, Muggy, Pokey, Set, Thick), جدی (Bonafide, Demure, Drastic, Earnest, Energetic, Grand, Rigid, Sedate, Serious, Stickler, Uncanny), رسمی (Ceremonious, Formal, Official, Starchy), باتشریفات . (various references)

Finnish

juhlallinen (ceremonious, grand). (various references)

French

solennel. (various references)

German

feierlich (ceremonial, ceremonious, festive, formal, formally, grand, grave, magisterial, ritualistic, solemnly), festlich (ceremonious, convivial, convivially, feastful, festal, festally, festive, gala, magnificent, solemnly, splendid). (various references)

Greek 

σεμνοπρεπής, σοβαρόσ (burning, demure, earnest, grave, important, matronal, matronly, saturnine, sedate, serious, sober, staid), σοβαρός (grievous, serious, serious about, severe), ιεροπρεπήσ, επίσημοσ (authoritative, ceremonial, ceremonious, formal, ministerial, notable). (various references)

Hebrew 

מעורר כבו�", ק�"וש (consecration, holy, kiddush, sacramental, sacred, saintly, sanctification), פורמלי (formal), חמור סבר, ח�'י�'י (ceremonial, festal, festive), טקסי (ceremonial, ceremonious, state). (various references)

Hungarian

ünnepélyes (ceremonial, ceremonious, festive, grave, to salaam, to solemnize). (various references)

Indonesian

khidmat. (various references)

Italian

solenne (ceremonial, impressive, regular, ritually, sacred, stately, statuesque). (various references)

Japanese Kanji 

謹厳 (grave, sobersided, stern), 荘重 (grave, impressive). (various references)

Japanese Katakana 

きびしい (austere, grave, intense, majestic, relentless, rigid, severe, stern, strict, unsparing), そうちょう (early morning, grave, impressive, master sergeant, president, secretary-general, sergeant major), しかつめらしい (formal), しゅくぜ�" (longstanding desire, quiet, silent), し�"�'�" (advice, counsel, earthquake centre, epicenter, epicentre, maxim, proposal, proverb), き�"�'�" (grave, maxim, sobersided, stern, wise saying, Yours Sincerely...), し�"みり (heart-to-heart, sad, serious), かたい (carelessness, certain, difficult, firm, hard, honorable, lower leg, lower limbs, lower part of the body, mistake, negligence, solid, steadfast, stubborn, stuffy writing, unpolished writing), いかめしい (austere, grave, intense, majestic, severe, stern, strict), �"う�"うしい (divine, sublime), �'�"ぜ�"たる (grave, majestic, stern), �'�"ぜ�" (before one's eyes, grave). (various references)

Korean 

엄숙한. (various references)

Manx

crauee (devout, religious), arrymagh (respectful, reverend, submissive, venerable, worshipful). (various references)

Pig Latin

olemnsay.(various references)

Portuguese

solene (august, budge, ceremonious, formal, grave, measured, portentous, sacred, serious, stiff). (various references)

Romanian

solemn (exalted, festival, grave, impressive, state), serios (appreciable, demure, earnest, earnestly, genuine, grave, gravely, grievously, important, in earnest, in good earnest, intimate, matronal, minded, reliable, sad, sedate, serious, serious minded, seriously, seriousness, severe, sober, solid, staid, steady, stern, valid, weighty, well-conducted), sacramental (decisive, sacramental), sãrbãtoresc (feastly, festal, festival, festive, holiday-like, merry, splendid), impresionant (arresting, imposing, imposingly, impressive), grav (austere, bad, badly, critical, grave, gravely, grievously, important, low, low-pitched, matronal, serious, stern, weighty), formal (express, formal, formally, formulary, modal, official, prim, scholastic, stiff), festiv (feastful, festival, festive, fine, holiday-like). (various references)

Russian 

торжественный (ceremonial, gala, sacramental, state). (various references)

Serbo-Croatian

svečan (declamatory, dressy, festal, festive, formal, gala, grave, serious, state, stately). (various references)

Spanish

solemne (ceremonial, conclusive, demure, dignified, official, owlish, ritually, vow). (various references)

Swedish

högtidlig (formal, grand). (various references)

Thai

เอาจริงเอาจัง (earnest, sober), เกี่ยวกับพิธีทางศาสนา (ritualistic). (various references)

Turkish

yasal (clean, competent, de jure, juridical, juristic, juristical, lawful, legal, legit, legitimate, licit, right, rightful, sound, statutory, technical, valid), törenle yapılan, resmi (authorized, ceremonial, ceremonious, certificated, civil, formal, legal, official, regulation, starchy, state, statutory), muhteşem (August, corking, glorious, gorgeous, grand, imperial, lordly, magnific, magnifical, magnificent, majestic, noble, olympian, regal, resplendent, royal, slashing, spectacular, splendid, stately, stupendous, superb), merasimli (ceremonial, ceremonious), kutsal (blessed, celestial, divine, heavenly, hiero-, holy, inviolate, sacramental, sacred, sacrosanct, Saint, sainted, saintly, sanctified, sanctus, venerable), heybetli (ample, baronial, dreadfull, formidable, grandiose, imposing, majestic, monumental, redoubtable, stately, tremendous), ciddi (austere, businesslike, capital, critical, demure, devout, earnest, eventful, forbidding, grave, gut, important, momentous, mortally, sedate, serious, sober, sober minded, staid, starched, unsmiling), ağırbaşlı (austere, calm, demure, dignified, earnest, graceful, grand, imperturbable, matronly, only, sage, sedate, serious, sober, sober minded, staid), önemli (big, big time, capital, consequential, considerable, emphatic, emphatical, eventful, fateful, grand, grave, great, gut, healthy, heavy, high, historic, historical, important, leading, major, momentous, noteworthy, of importance, of note, of weight, prominent, respectable, serious, significant, smart, star, substantial, top-line, urgent, weighty, worthy). (various references)

Ukrainian

урочистий (ceremonial, gala, sonorous), серйозний (deep, demure, earnest, serious, serious minded), офіційний (ceremonial, formal, functional, functionary, official), пихатий (arrogant, assuming, bloated, cavalier, cockish, conceited, foppish, haughty, highfalutin, highfaluting, high-flown, high-hearted, hoity toity, inflated, magniloquent, mouthy, overweening, portentous, puffed up, ritzy, self-important, side, vain). (various references)

Vietnamese 

uy nghiêm nghiêm trang, trọng thể (royally), theo nghi thức (formal), nghiêm nghị khoan thai, long trọng; trang nghiêm uy nghi. (various references)

Welsh

difrifol (earnest, grave, serious), difrifddwys. (various references)

augusto, augustum, festa, feste, festi, festis, festo, festos, festum, festus, serius, sollemne, sollemnem, sollemnes, sollemni, sollemnibus, sollemnis, sollemnium. (various references)

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

Derivations

Words beginning with "solemn": solemner, solemnest, solemnified, solemnifies, solemnify, solemnifying, solemnities, solemnity, solemnization, solemnizations, solemnize, solemnized, solemnizes, solemnizing, solemnly, solemnness, solemnnesses. (additional references)

Misspellings

"Solemn" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: colemn, olem, salmen, Selemani, soilen, Solayman, soleen, solem, solemin, solemnm, solemny, solenn, Solimena, sollen, solom, solomn, solum, Souleiman, splemn, ssolemn, Sulejman, Syleyma. (additional references)

Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits.

Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams

Direct Anagrams: lemons, melons.

-1 letter: enols, lemon, lenos, melon, meson, moles, noels, nomes, omens.

-2 letters: elms, enol, eons, leno, lens, lone, lose, mels, meno, mole, mols, mons, noel, noes, nome, noms, nose, oles, omen, ones, sloe, sole, some, sone.

-3 letters: elm, els, ems, ens, eon, mel, men, mol, mon, mos, nom, nos, oes, ole, oms, one, ons, ose.

+1 letter: dolmens, lomeins, loments, meltons, merlons, nombles.

+2 letters: almoners, benomyls, emulsion, foilsmen, laminose, lemonish, lonesome, longsome, manholes, melanous, menfolks, menthols, misenrol, moleskin, mongrels, monocles, moonless, moonlets, nelumbos, neoplasm, normless, oenomels, oinomels, pleonasm, semolina, simoleon, snowmelt, solemner, solemnly.

+3 letters: alimonies, almonries, amelcorns, amylogens, anomalies, bonemeals, bromelins, comingles, commensal, complines, cornmeals, emblazons, emboldens, emulsions, endoplasm, flamencos, hemolysin, homelands, imboldens, lemonades, limestone, limonenes, limonites, limousine, linoleums, lodgments, lomentums, lonesomes, mangonels, marlstone, melanoids, melanomas, melodeons, meltdowns, mestranol, methanols, milestone, millstone, misenroll, misenrols, modelings, moldiness, moleskins, molesting, monellins, monofuels, monopoles, monostele, monostely, monthlies, morseling, muskmelon, mylonites, neologism, neoplasms, nobeliums, noisomely, nonmetals, normalise, pemolines, pleonasms, schoolmen, semicolon, semitonal, semolinas, simoleons, simpleton, snowmelts, solemnest, solemnify, solemnity, solemnize, somnolent, spoilsmen, telamones, winsomely, womanless.