pitiful
So appalling or sad that one feels or should feel sorry for itSo appalling or sad that one feels or should feel sorry for it; eliciting pity.
» The little girl, deeply moved by the old man's pitiful story, burst into tears.
Tief gerührt von der bemitleidenswerten Geschichte des alten Mannes, brach das kleine Mädchen in Tränen aus. — Hans_Adler
Девочку глубоко тронула история пожилого мужчины, и она расплакалась. — odexed
CK · Tatoeba · CC BY 2.0 FRMeaning
4 sensesSo appalling or sad that one feels or should feel sorry for it; eliciting pity.
Scotland has a pitiful climate.
erbärmlich, kläglich, jämmerlich
жа́лкийžálkij, бе́дненькийbédnenʹkij, жа́лостныйžálostnyj
жа́ліснийžálisnyj
Eliciting contempt.
inspiring mixed contempt and pity
Of an amount or number: very small.
A pitiful number of students bothered to turn up.
kümmerlich, armselig
жа́лкийžálkij, ничто́жныйničtóžnyj, ми́зерныйmízernyj
(archaic)Feeling pity; merciful.
deserving or inciting pity
Examples
30 sentencesThe little girl, deeply moved by the old man's pitiful story, burst into tears.
ruДевочку глубоко тронула история пожилого мужчины, и она расплакалась. — odexed
deTief gerührt von der bemitleidenswerten Geschichte des alten Mannes, brach das kleine Mädchen in Tränen aus. — Hans_Adler
That was pitiful.
What a pitiful kid!
He's unlucky to a pitiful extent.
The pitiful sight moved us to tears.
ruОт этого душераздирающего зрелища на глаза у нас навернулись слёзы. — elsteris
Translations
7 languagesBy meaning 1
By meaning 2
By meaning 2
Origin
From Middle English pityful, piteful, piteeful. By surface analysis, pit(i) + -ful.From Middle English pityful, piteful, piteeful. By surface analysis, pit(i) + -ful.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
pitifuller, pitifullest| Comparative | pitifuller Lesson |
|---|---|
| Superlative | pitifullest Lesson |
irregular
Synonyms
35 synonyms- inspiring mixed contempt and pity:patheticpitiable
- bad; unfortunate:deplorabledistressinglamentablesadsorry
- deserving or inciting pity:haplessmiserablemisfortunatepatheticpiteouspitiablepoorwretched
Antonyms
5 antonymsWord family
6 related wordsLessons for this word
2 lessons- A2Comparatives — Because it has a comparative form
- A2Superlatives — Because it has a superlative form