Tearful means having tears in your eyes or crying, often because you feel sad, upset, or overwhelmed by emotion. When someone gets tearful, their eyes fill with water that might spill down their cheeks, and their voice might shake or crack when they try to speak.

You might see a friend become tearful when they have to say goodbye to someone they care about, or when they're frustrated because they've been working on a difficult problem for hours. Sometimes people get tearful from happiness too: a parent might get tearful watching their child perform in a school play, overcome by pride and joy.

A tearful goodbye describes a sad parting where people are crying. A tearful apology suggests someone feels genuinely sorry and emotional about what happened. The word captures both the physical tears and the deep feelings behind them.

Being tearful isn't the same as sobbing or wailing. Someone who's tearful might be trying to hold back their emotions, fighting to stay composed while tears gather in their eyes. It's that moment right before or during crying when emotions show on your face and in your eyes, whether from sadness, frustration, relief, or even overwhelming happiness.