what does it mean to be full of woe

“Full of woe” means feeling deep sadness, grief, or distress. In modern use, it can also mean having lots of troubles or problems.

Common meaning

• Emotional: very sad, sorrowful, or miserable.
• Everyday speech: dealing with many problems or misfortunes.

Example

• “Her face was full of woe” means she looked very sad.

• “Financial woes” means money troubles.

In the rhyme

In “Monday’s Child,” “full of woe” is a traditional line describing a child as sad or unlucky. The wording is part of a nursery rhyme and is not meant as a literal diagnosis of someone’s feelings.

Would you like a couple of easy example sentences using the phrase?