"to make sorrowful," 1620s, from sad + -en (1). Earlier verb was simply sade, from Old English sadian, which also could be the immediate source of the modern verb. Intransitive meaning "to become sad" is from 1718. Related: Saddened; saddening.
The news of her death saddened me
sacro-
sacrosanct
sacrum
sad
saddelry
sadden
sadder
saddle
saddleback
saddlebag
saddler