na-adjective, noun
sad-looking; seeming sad; with a sad air
Describes someone or something that appears sad, often used for facial expressions, eyes, or atmosphere. The suffix げ attaches to the adjective stem 悲し to mean 'seeming' or 'looking'.
彼女は悲しげな目をしていた。
She had sad-looking eyes.
彼は悲しげにうつむいた。
He hung his head sadly.
Formed from the adjective stem 悲し (kanashi, 'sad') + the suffix げ (ge, 'seeming, appearing'). The suffix げ derives from the classical Japanese 気 (ke, 'sign, indication'), which itself comes from the kanji 気.