pathetic
adj.-
1 weak or inadequate (adj.) B2 Upper Intermediate Informalso weak, small, or bad that it is embarrassing or annoying.
arousing scorn or contempt through miserable inadequacy or lack of effort.
ExampleThe team gave a pathetic performance and lost the game by five goals.
ExampleThe company's pathetic attempt to justify the price hike only served to further alienate its long-term customer base.
UsageOften used as a strong insult to describe an excuse, an effort, or a person's character.
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2 causing pity (adj.) B2 Upper Intermediatemaking you feel deep sadness or pity.
arousing pity, sympathy, or compassion; evocative of pathos.
ExampleThe lost kitten looked pathetic shivering in the cold rain.
ExampleThe witness gave a pathetic account of the hardships faced by the refugees during the winter months.
Teacher's tipWhile this sense is the original meaning, be aware that modern speakers often use 'pathetic' to mean 'useless' or 'contemptible' instead.
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3 anatomy (adj.) C2 Proficiency Technical Medicinea technical word for a specific nerve or muscle in the eye.
relating to the trochlear nerve or the superior oblique muscle of the eye.
ExampleThe doctor checked the pathetic nerve to see if the patient's eye could move correctly.
ExampleDamage to the pathetic nerve can result in vertical diplopia, significantly affecting the patient's ability to look downward and inward.
- trochlear
From Middle French pathétique, from Latin patheticus, from Ancient Greek παθητικός (pathētikós, “subject to feeling, capable of feeling, impassioned”), from παθητός (pathētós, “one who has suffered, subject to suffering”), from πάσχω (páskhō, “to suffer”).