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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

pity.

A feeling of sympathy at the misfortune or suffering of someone or something.

4 characters2 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/ˈpɪt.i/
  1. A feeling of sympathy at the misfortune or suffering of someone or something.

    uncountable
    I can't feel any pity towards the gang, who got injured while attempting to break into a flat.
    take pity on someone
  2. Feeling of contempt one has for someone who is hopelessly inferior.

    uncountable
  3. Something regrettable.

    countable · singular · singular-only
    It's a pity you're feeling unwell because there's a party on tonight.
    What a pity about the band breaking up. I loved them!
  4. Piety.

    Early · Modern · countable · obsolete · uncountable
Where this word comes from

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.

verb/ˈpɪt.i/
  1. To feel pity for (someone or something).

    transitive
    You have got to pity the guy - he lost his wife, mother and job in the same month.
  2. To feel contempt for someone who is hopelessly inferior.

    transitive
  3. To make (someone) feel pity; to provoke the sympathy or compassion of.

    regional · transitive
Where this word comes from

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.

intj/ˈpɪt.i/
  1. Ellipsis of what a pity.

    abbreviation · alt-of · ellipsis
Where this word comes from

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.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.