pathetic
pathetic Lexical Profile
pathetic Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Miserably inadequate, feeble, or of such a low standard as to provoke contempt or derision.
"He offered a pathetic excuse for missing the presentation deadline."
Arousing pity, sympathy, or sadness due to vulnerability, suffering, or helplessness.
"The stray dog looked pathetic as it shivered in the pouring rain."
Relating to or affecting the emotions or passions (used especially in literary or philosophical contexts, as in 'pathetic fallacy').
"The novelist frequently uses the pathetic fallacy, describing stormy skies to mirror the protagonist's inner turmoil."
Word Nuance & Usage
While 'pathetic' historically meant evoking genuine sympathy or deep emotion, in modern everyday usage it almost exclusively carries a strong pejorative tone of contempt for something miserably inadequate or weak.
• Rhymes for pathetic
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 16th century from Middle French pathétique, via Late Latin patheticus, from Ancient Greek pathētikos ('sensitive, capable of emotion'), derived from pathos ('suffering, feeling, or emotion').