ruthful

9.9

Feeling sorry or showing pity, often for harm you caused

adjective
/ˈruːθfəl/

Archaic

: compasivo

Her ruthful expression betrayed a deep sense of guilt for her actions.

Examples

In a ruthful mood, he apologized sincerely to those he had wronged.
He gave her a ruthful glance, regretting his harsh words.
She felt ruthful after realizing her mistake.
His ruthful expression showed how much he cared.
He gave her a ruthful glance, regretting his harsh words.
Her ruthful expression showed her deep remorse for what she had done.
Feeling ruthful, he wrote a heartfelt letter of apology to his friend.

Synonyms

remorseful

vsruthful

18 4.6

Feeling very sorry for doing something that hurt someone

also shows sorrow but can include pity and less focus on guilt

mournful

vsruthful

18 3.9

Feeling deep sadness because of a loss

focuses more on pity or remorse connected to wrongdoing than public grief

sorrowful

vsruthful

14 3.6

Feeling very sad because of loss or disappointment

adds possible compassion or regret about wrongdoing rather than only sadness

contrite

vsruthful

13 8.1

Feeling very sorry for doing something wrong and wanting forgiveness

is more about general compassion or sorrow than deep guilt or penance

repentant

vsruthful

8 4.8

Feeling sorry about something you did and wanting to make it right

expresses sorrow or pity but not necessarily a wish to change behavior

rueful

vsruthful

5 7.8

Feeling sorry about something you did and showing it

is more openly compassionate or deeply sorrowful rather than mildly regretful

doleful

vsruthful

3 8.2

Feeling or showing deep sadness

is tied to pity or remorse often about wrongdoing rather than simple gloom

Antonyms

indifferent

46 4.4

Not interested or showing no strong feeling about something

uncompassionate

1 7.3

Not caring when other people suffer

How Compassionate

merciful

54 3.3

compassionate

151 3.7

ruthful

Archaic

9.9

sympathetic

152 3.4

pitying

1 3.9

Surface Forms

ruthful positive

Morphology

ruthful = ruth (semi-transparent) = ruth + ful

Formed regularly from the noun 'ruth' + the productive suffix '-ful', but 'ruth' is archaic/rare so many learners will not recognize the base.

Etymology

The word ruthful comes from the old word ruth, which meant 'pity' or 'sorrow'. It is related to the verb rue ('to regret') and is the opposite of ruthless, so ruthful means 'full of pity or regret'.