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
Both bravely and regretfully, Daniel shared how those feelings led him to treat his friends poorly.
—
Claudia Levens, Journal Sentinel, 18 Nov. 2024
In the bit, host Jimmy Fallon regretfully informed the audience that the singer would no longer be appearing as promised.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2024
Next to him sits Saban, who seems to be looking off regretfully into space.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2024
Colin has been rather bland in the first two seasons, and regretfully Newton's performance hasn't done much to give him life.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 16 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretfully
Claudia Levens, Journal Sentinel, 18 Nov. 2024
In the bit, host Jimmy Fallon regretfully informed the audience that the singer would no longer be appearing as promised.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 4 Oct. 2024
Next to him sits Saban, who seems to be looking off regretfully into space.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 13 Sep. 2024
Colin has been rather bland in the first two seasons, and regretfully Newton's performance hasn't done much to give him life.
—Kelly Lawler, USA TODAY, 16 May 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretfully
Recent Examples of Synonyms for regretfully
Adverb
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But Maura sadly robbed us of that excitement and robbed herself of the prize pot.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
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Nearly all the many, many other speakers went long, as people in the audience poked sadly at their overdone steaks.—
Tad Friend,
New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2026
Adverb
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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
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Since October last year, Russia has intensified its drone and missile attacks on the Ukrainian energy system, knocking out electricity and heat and plunging millions of Ukrainians into long blackouts during bitterly cold winter temperatures.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
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In Alchevsk, a city in the Luhansk region, over half the homes have been without heat for two bitterly cold months.—
Yuras Karmanau,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Adverb
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Last year, a commitment to figuring out how to win each game’s evolving chess aided a run to 90 wins despite an offense that was painfully short of home run power.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 Feb. 2026
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Viewers don’t need to be overly aware of the era’s politics to recognize the differences in worldview, circumstances and loyalties that painfully divide these sisters.—
Emily McClanathan,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Feb. 2026
Adverb
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For their part, Democratic leaders spoke mournfully of limits, of energy shortages, of national decline, of a crisis of confidence itself.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
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Based on the Dylan Thomas prose poem of the same name, published in 1952, the film lovingly and mournfully depicts the boyhood Christmastime of an old Welshman, tenderly and a tad mischievously embodied by Elliott.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
21 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Regretfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/regretfully. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
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