pity

noun \ ˈpi-tē \

Definition of pity

plural pities

1 a :sympathetic sorrow for one suffering, distressed, or unhappy

b :capacity to feel pity

2 :something to be regretted

it's a pity you can't go

See pity defined for English-language learners

See pity defined for kids

Examples of pity in a Sentence

She has had a hard life and deserves your pity.
I felt deep pity for the lost dog.
He didn't live to see his daughter grow up, and that's a pity.

Recent Examples of pity from the Web

Zack Greinke, Arizona Diamondbacks Season Stats: 14–6, 3.16 ERA, 1.077 WHIP, 10.0 K/9 (178 K), 4.81 K/BB, 151 ERA+, 5.3 WAR Pity the Colorado Rockies, who will likely have to face a resurgent Greinke in the NL wild-card game on Oct. 4.

— gabriel baumgaertner, SI.com, "Awards Watch: Corey Kluber Overtakes Chris Sale In Razor-Thin AL Cy Young Race," 25 Aug. 2017
Yet her book doesn't drift into self-pity or blame-shaming.

— julie hinds, Detroit Free Press, "Will the screen version of 'The Glass Castle' live up to the remarkable memoir?," 6 Aug. 2017
Such propaganda — now an advertising meme — distorts history in order to fulfill a liberal fantasy that keeps black Americans indebted to whites’ condescending pity.

— armond white, National Review, "Kathryn Bigelow Does the Wrong Thing in Detroit," 4 Aug. 2017
Because of this, my pity for my future mother-in-law is stunted.

— steve almond and cheryl strayed, New York Times, "Grief’s 7 Stages Don’t Include Envy and Resentment," 1 Aug. 2017
L’Affaire Lamby follows the pattern: Self-exposure, self-pity, and (of course) self-forgiveness.

— kyle smith, National Review, "Dog-Dumping Millennial-Style, Starring Lena Dunham," 11 July 2017
I was always encouraged to avoid asking dumb-ass questions; pity that Hannity was never #

— michael arceneaux, The Root, "Sean Hannity Can’t Accept That Some of Us Don’t Want to Have Sex With Trump Supporters," 1 July 2017
No other team in the NFL pities the New Orleans Saints.

— larry holder, NOLA.com, "Saints' on-field problem-solving skills must improve with Nick Fairley out for 2017," 27 June 2017
When a team is so bad getting the player of the year won't fix it, sympathy surrenders to pity.

— bernie lincicome, chicagotribune.com, "June 20, 1984: Apologetic Bulls 'stuck' with Michael Jordan," 23 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'pity.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of pity

Middle English pite, from Anglo-French pité, from Latin pietat-, pietas piety, pity, from pius pious

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First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

pity Synonyms

Synonyms

disgrace, crime, shame, sin

Antonyms

coldheartedness, hard-heartedness, inhumanity, inhumanness, mercilessness, pitilessness

Related Words

outrage, scandal

Near Antonyms

callousness, coldness, disinterest, indifference, unconcern; cruelty, harshness; animosity, antipathy, dislike, hatred, hostility

Synonym Discussion of pity

pity, compassion, commiseration, condolence, sympathy mean the act or capacity for sharing the painful feelings of another. pity implies tender or sometimes slightly contemptuous sorrow for one in misery or distress.

- felt pity for the captives

compassion implies pity coupled with an urgent desire to aid or to spare.

- treats the homeless with great compassion

commiseration suggests pity expressed outwardly in exclamations, tears, or words of comfort.

- murmurs of commiseration filled the loser's headquarters

condolence applies chiefly to formal expression of grief to one who has suffered loss.

- expressed their condolences to the widow

sympathy often suggests a tender concern but can also imply a power to enter into another's emotional experience of any sort.

- went to my best friend for sympathy
- in sympathy with her desire to locate her natural parents

pity

verb

Definition of pity

pitied; pitying

transitive verb

:to feel pity for

intransitive verb

:to feel pity

See pity defined for English-language learners

Examples of pity in a Sentence

I pity anyone who has to work at that place.
I always pity the people who have to work in this freezing weather.

Recent Examples of pity from the Web

Pity the poor chief information officer of a Fortune 500 company who has to wade through hundreds of products, pick the right ones, integrate them and then make all of that secure.

— barb darrow, Fortune, "VMware Puts Security at the Heart of its Software," 27 Aug. 2017
Nobody forced me to pity myself and pick at my food for a semester.

— amber rambharose, Glamour, "I Got My Nipples Pierced to Feel Better About My Boobs Getting Smaller," 16 Aug. 2017
That said, no one should pity those people whispering their fears to CNN.

— michael arceneaux, The Root, "Donald Trump Has Always Been a Disloyal Thot," 24 July 2017
But there was no need to pity this busy bride, whose apron would soon be traded for Dior Haute Couture.

— rob haskell, Vogue, "Miranda Kerr’s Wedding Dress: An Exclusive Look at Her Custom Dior Haute Couture Gown," 16 July 2017
Breitbart can’t pivot away from right-wing click-bait to sober, deeply reported news any more than Trump can pivot away from paranoid tweets, self-pitying broadsides against the media and weekends at Mar-a-Lago.

— alexander nazaryan, Newsweek, "Breitbart News, Donald Trump’s Pravda, Is in Crisis," 15 June 2017
Is there an alternate timeline where Omar was pitied by someone in power and given a chance to not become a killer?

— edgar gomez, Longreads, "Pulse Nightclub Was My Home," 13 June 2017
Oh, Sean, don't be so self-pitying and self-critical.

— The Hive, "How CBS Could Seriously Shake Up the Evening News," 2 June 2017
After temper tantrums and self-pitying scenes, the film climaxes in the prime minister’s rousing radio address of June 6, 1944, celebrating D-Day.

— alan zilberman, The Denver Post, "“Churchill” drags, as both history and entertainment," 2 June 2017

First Known Use of pity

15th century

pity Synonyms

Synonyms

ache (for), bleed (for), commiserate (with), compassionate, condole (with), feel (for), sympathize (with), yearn (over)

Related Words

care (for); grieve (for), sorrow (for); love; empathize (with), identify (with); tolerate, understand

Near Antonyms

disregard, ignore, neglect, overlook; dislike, hate, scorn

PITY Defined for English Language Learners

pity

noun

Definition of pity for English Language Learners

: a strong feeling of sadness or sympathy for someone or something
: something that causes sadness or disappointment

pity

verb

Definition of pity for English Language Learners

: to feel pity for (someone or something) : to feel sorry for (someone or something)

PITY Defined for Kids

pity

noun \ ˈpi-tē \

Definition of pity for Students

1 :a feeling of sadness or sympathy for the suffering or unhappiness of others

2 :something that causes regret or disappointment

What a pity that you can't go.

pity

verb

Definition of pity for Students

pitied; pitying

:to feel sadness and sympathy for

Learn More about pity

See words that rhyme with pity Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for pity Spanish Central: Translation of pity Nglish: Translation of pity for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of pity for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about pity

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Definition of pity

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Examples of pity in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of pity

pity Synonyms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Synonym Discussion of pity

pity

Definition of pity

Examples of pity in a Sentence

Recent Examples of pity from the Web

First Known Use of pity

pity Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

Near Antonyms

Phrases Related to PITY

Related Phrases

PITY Defined for English Language Learners

pity

Definition of pity for English Language Learners

pity

Definition of pity for English Language Learners

PITY Defined for Kids

pity

Definition of pity for Students

pity

Definition of pity for Students

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