Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Inspiring or deserving pity.
- adjective Arousing contemptuous pity, as through ineptitude or inadequacy. synonym: pathetic.
- adjective Archaic Filled with pity or compassion.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Full of pity; tender; compassionate; having a feeling of sorrow and sympathy for the distressed.
- Exciting or fitted to excite pity or compassion; miserable; deplorable; sad: as, a pitiful condition; a pitiful look.
- To be pitied for its littleness or meanness; paltry; insignificant; contemptible; despicable.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Full of pity; tender-hearted; compassionate; kind; merciful; sympathetic.
- adjective Piteous; lamentable; eliciting compassion.
- adjective To be pitied for littleness or meanness; miserable; paltry; contemptible; despicable.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Feeling
pity ;merciful . - adjective So
appalling orsad that one feels or should feelsorry for it; elicitingpity . - adjective Very small (of an amount or number).
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective bad; unfortunate
- adjective deserving or inciting pity
- adjective inspiring mixed contempt and pity
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word pitiful.
Examples
-
Consider This: Not only is this name hard to spell and pronounce, but it also seems to conjure up the word pitiful.
5-Star Baby Name Advisor Bruce Lansky 2008
-
Consider This: Not only is this name hard to spell and pronounce, but it also seems to conjure up the word pitiful.
5-Star Baby Name Advisor Bruce Lansky 2008
-
Lipton looked across at Conroy, his expression pitiful.
Sin City Max Allan Collins 2002
-
Lipton looked across at Conroy, his expression pitiful.
Sin City Max Allan Collins 2002
-
Lipton looked across at Conroy, his expression pitiful.
Sin City Max Allan Collins 2002
-
They went around trying to get invited – how pitiful is that and even came with their own film crew.
-
A thousand dogs, in pitiful chorus, wailed their ancient wrongs and claimed mercy from the unheeding stars.
-
A thousand dogs, in pitiful chorus, wailed their ancient wrongs and claimed mercy from the unheeding stars.
THE SCORN OF WOMEN 2010
-
This model is in pitiful shape; it's warped with water damaged, faded from the sun, and set beneath a perpetual drip of water-runoff from the cliff above.
April 28th, 2005 2005
-
A thousand dogs, in pitiful chorus, wailed their ancient wrongs and claimed mercy from the unheeding stars.
The Scorn of Women 1901
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.