wistful
adjective /ˈwɪstfl/
  /ˈwɪstfl/
- thinking sadly about something that you would like to have, especially something in the past that you can no longer have
- a wistful smile
 - There was something rather wistful about the sad little tune.
 
Oxford Collocations DictionaryWistful is used with these nouns:- expression
 - longing
 - nostalgia
 - …
 
Word Originearly 17th cent.: apparently from obsolete wistly ‘intently’, influenced by wishful.