1
as in pathetic
deserving pitying scorn (as for inadequacy)
that piece of junk is a pitiful excuse for a car
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lame
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
a pitiful coward
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in poor
deserving of one's pity
pitiful orphans who had lost everything in the war
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pitiful
As del Toro sees it, Frankenstein’s pitiful creation has been cursed with life, cannot be killed (even bullets don’t stop him) and must face the same existential crisis that confronts us all.
—
Peter Debruge, Variety, 30 Aug. 2025
Over 1,000 murdered whilst queuing for aid, starved due to their siege, whilst pitiful amounts of aid delivered by a sham agency controlled by Israel.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2025
Fried wasn’t the only reason the Yankees lost on Sunday, as the Bombers’ bats were pitiful against Jason Alexander.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
Once Bernstein landed on broadcast television, in the mid-fifties, such guides looked pitiful.
—David Denby, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for pitiful
Peter Debruge, Variety, 30 Aug. 2025
Over 1,000 murdered whilst queuing for aid, starved due to their siege, whilst pitiful amounts of aid delivered by a sham agency controlled by Israel.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2025
Fried wasn’t the only reason the Yankees lost on Sunday, as the Bombers’ bats were pitiful against Jason Alexander.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
Once Bernstein landed on broadcast television, in the mid-fifties, such guides looked pitiful.
—David Denby, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for pitiful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pitiful
Adjective
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Characters can be pathetic, and frank about their Toledo Truth Teller’s bleak prospects.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Jimmy Kimmel is a pathetic hate monger.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Another main issue is that the power grind itself now being the endgame is no longer a good motivator to play, nor is the Tier system with 3s not much different than 4s or 5s, and all past weapons being somewhat lame now outside of that system entirely.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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Paine proposed a lump sum payment of £15 (£2,306 in 2025) to everyone reaching the age of twenty-one and a £10 (£1,537 in 2025) annual pension for the blind and lame, as well as for those fifty and older.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Similar protests occurred in Brazil over steep living costs and poor healthcare and education ahead of the country hosting the 2014 World Cup tournament.—
Connor Greene,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
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Over time, dysfunctional breathing reinforces poor posture and scapular instability.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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One purveyor of fairy tales that wasn’t afraid of a sad ending?—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
3 Oct. 2025
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Sade Bess, a Combs fan from Brooklyn, left the court’s overflow observation room looking both sad and relieved.—
Jennifer Peltz,
Fortune,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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This World Cup wasn’t going to be cheap to attend, but these memories for life cost so much that swathes of people can’t even toy with the idea.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
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Utility executives and analysts have said clean energy projects are crucial to help power new data centers and factories, because they can be built quickly and produce electricity that is relatively cheap.—
Michael Copley,
NPR,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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When the din inside Rams Park had finally subsided, Arne Slot attempted to put a positive spin on a wretched night for Liverpool.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
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Yes, Baltimore’s defense is wretched, so don’t count on this being a cure-all, exactly.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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For both areas, Painter hit the transfer portal and landed a dirty-work center in Cluff.—
CJ Moore,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
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Far from a knightly war, the German advance in 1941-1942 against France was a dirty one, with thieving of private property and menace against civilians.—
Christopher C. Gorham
September 29,
Literary Hub,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The same goes for Treinen, who endured a miserable September, allowing 12 runs (10 earned) in 9 1/3 innings.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
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And so, a miserable team performance was cemented into a 26-21 loss, the team’s first of the year.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pitiful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pitiful. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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