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pity

n. · v.
US //ˈpɪti// UK //pˈɪti// pity
  1. 1 feeling of sympathy (n.)
    B1 Intermediate

    a feeling of sadness or sympathy for someone who is suffering or has bad luck.

    a feeling of sorrow and compassion caused by the suffering or misfortune of others. Uncountable in this sense.

    Example

    I felt a great sense of pity for the people who lost their homes in the storm.

    Example

    The witness spoke with genuine pity for the victims, describing the hardships they endured during the long winter of the occupation.
  2. 2 to feel sorry for someone (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to feel sympathy or sadness for someone because of their situation.

    to feel compassion or sorrow for the misfortunes of another. Transitive, taking the person or situation as a direct object.

    Example

    You should not pity him; he is a very strong person who can handle this.

    Example

    The public began to pity the fallen politician, whose personal tragedies seemed to outweigh his professional failures in the eyes of the voters.
Origin

From Middle English pitye, pitie, pittye, pitee, pite, from Anglo-Norman pité, pittee etc., from Old French pitet, pitié, from Latin pietās. See also the doublets pietà and piety.

Idioms2 entries

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