1
as in pitiful
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
the sales presentation was a pitiable display of ineptitude and disorganization
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pathetic
deserving pitying scorn (as for inadequacy)
a pitiable attempt at singing that generated snickers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in poor
deserving of one's pity
a pitiable, starving old dog
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pitiable
The series’ pitiable ghost is Kayako (Takako Fuji), at the receiving end of violence in life, prone to continue inflicting violence on others in death.
—
Gayle Sequeira, Vulture, 20 Jan. 2025
Part of that is Doug, who is too pitiable to make a compelling center.
—J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
Visiting the White Lotus’ Thailand hotel to learn new techniques and share her own, Belinda’s arc is less pitiable this season, but her purpose is arguably even more critical.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2025
No wonder the film nabbed so many Oscar nominations: Academy members are always going to want their cinematic Mexico to be a pitiable hellhole in need of salvation and a reminder to change its errant ways, a trope that goes back to the days of Manifest Destiny.
—Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pitiable
Gayle Sequeira, Vulture, 20 Jan. 2025
Part of that is Doug, who is too pitiable to make a compelling center.
—J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 18 Mar. 2025
Visiting the White Lotus’ Thailand hotel to learn new techniques and share her own, Belinda’s arc is less pitiable this season, but her purpose is arguably even more critical.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 11 Feb. 2025
No wonder the film nabbed so many Oscar nominations: Academy members are always going to want their cinematic Mexico to be a pitiable hellhole in need of salvation and a reminder to change its errant ways, a trope that goes back to the days of Manifest Destiny.
—Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pitiable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pitiable
Adjective
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So many of the latter comes thanks to Niecy Nash’s Nurse DiDi, who seems to take the time to see her patients as worthwhile much more often than her cohorts, the self-important Dr. Jenna James (Laurie Metcalf) and pitiful nurse Dawn (Alex Borstein).—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
21 Apr. 2025
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Look, everyone points to injuries as the reason for the pitiful performance so far this season, but a lot of teams are dealing with injuries.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Kenney-Silver delivers a touchingly nuanced performance as Anne, balanced on the fine line between sad as in devastated and sad as in pathetic.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
1 May 2025
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Marathon needs to be given every possible chance to succeed and making Bungie crunch to fix things and throwing it into the wolves as a fall release (one that’s literally on the same day as Borderlands 4, mind you) would be a pathetic excuse for support.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Consumer spending softened, increasing 1.8%, down from a 4% rise in the fourth quarter, but a decent performance in light of stock market turmoil and poor weather early in the quarter.—
Paul Davidson,
USA Today,
1 May 2025
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These factors could contribute material risk to Nike’s earnings and put the company in a poor position to manage near-term headwinds.—
Lisa Kailai Han,
CNBC,
30 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
As holidays go, however, Flag Day can feel a bit lame.—
Kevin Fisher-Paulson,
San Francisco Chronicle,
8 June 2021
-
My 11-year-old loved watching the pups roll balls and play a giant floor piano, but for non-dog owners (guilty as charged), parts of the series—like dressing dogs in little hats and outfits for a Parisian fashion show—feel lame.—
Tim Neville,
Outside Online,
23 Nov. 2020
Adjective
-
Though the courts have not invariably ruled against Trump, the Administration’s record so far is, to use one of the President’s favorite words, sad.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
21 Apr. 2025
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The sad story of Alex Verdugo was one of the most puzzling dramas of the MLB offseason.—
Nicholas Creel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The fighting has spawned one of the world's most wretched humanitarian disasters.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
28 Apr. 2025
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The seventh-seeded Warriors entered Tuesday night’s game at Chase Center looking to move past their wretched play-in past.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Some cheaper tags don’t have a replaceable battery although some have rechargeable cells.—
Mark Sparrow,
Forbes.com,
27 Apr. 2025
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With police turning a blind eye, Portland became a honeypot for local and out-of-state addicts to score cheap dope and use it freely.—
Jason Motlagh,
Rolling Stone,
27 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Politics Trump officials’ defiance over Abrego Garcia’s deportation is ‘shocking,’ appeals court says April 17, 2025 His underlings ape his ghoulish glee in making life miserable for undocumented immigrants.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Apr. 2025
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Just 22 regulation wins, more than only the miserable Chicago Blackhawks (20) and San Jose Sharks (14)?—
Kevin Kurz,
New York Times,
18 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pitiable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pitiable. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
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