as in sadly
with feelings of bitterness or grief
I must regretfully inform you that you are not among those who have been accepted for our internship program
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Recent Examples of regretfully
Teenagers look around and see adults thinking back on the year, whether wistfully, regretfully, triumphantly or gratefully.
—
Dr. Marlena Corcoran, Forbes.com, 29 Dec. 2025
The polite way to decline an invite to a wedding is to wish them well, thank them for inviting you and regretfully decline.
—Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
For the role of Desmond, Wilder turned to Swanson, who in real life had also once existed among Hollywood’s loftiest ranks at the height of her career during the Silent Era of the 1920s and '30s, but had gradually — but not regretfully — followed other directions when her stardom waned.
—Scott Huver, People.com, 3 Aug. 2025
Both bravely and regretfully, Daniel shared how those feelings led him to treat his friends poorly.
—Claudia Levens, Journal Sentinel, 18 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretfully
Dr. Marlena Corcoran, Forbes.com, 29 Dec. 2025
The polite way to decline an invite to a wedding is to wish them well, thank them for inviting you and regretfully decline.
—Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2025
For the role of Desmond, Wilder turned to Swanson, who in real life had also once existed among Hollywood’s loftiest ranks at the height of her career during the Silent Era of the 1920s and '30s, but had gradually — but not regretfully — followed other directions when her stardom waned.
—Scott Huver, People.com, 3 Aug. 2025
Both bravely and regretfully, Daniel shared how those feelings led him to treat his friends poorly.
—Claudia Levens, Journal Sentinel, 18 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretfully
Recent Examples of Synonyms for regretfully
Adverb
-
But sadly, this effort is being affected in a negative manner by neighboring counties.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 June 2026
-
An Indianapolis woman reported missing earlier this year along with her seven children has sadly been found dead in Mexico, though her kids are safe, her family told IndyStar.—
Joe Mutascio,
IndyStar,
10 June 2026
Adverb
-
Tarun would tease her, and my mother would look sorrowfully toward Kavitha, as if the two of them now shared some womanly burden.—
Madhuri Vijay,
New Yorker,
16 Nov. 2025
Adverb
-
That leaves the volatile Joanne feeling shut out and bitterly resentful.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
16 June 2026
-
The German poet Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, desperate to connect with the grandeur of antiquity and left bitterly disappointed by his visit to Rome, eventually arrived in this once-vibrant center of the extended Greek empire.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Adverb
-
The effect of Gaza on these particular swing voters lingers painfully in the thoughts of Harris’s most ardent supporters.—
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
Vanity Fair,
15 June 2026
-
Data, Not Models, Is The Bottleneck Companies that invested (sometimes painfully) in clean, governed and accessible data two or three years ago are seeing that investment pay compounding dividends today.—
Irfan Khan,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
Adverb
-
So is the moment early in the film when Mary mournfully looks on as her long-ago home faces demolition to make room for a big, featureless residential complex.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
6 June 2026
-
Things are getting hot in Kayce's love life, even after the widower mournfully visits the East Camp memorial to his beloved wife, Monica Dutton (Kelsey Asbille).—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
25 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Regretfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/regretfully. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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