sorry

Examples

• All

• I feel sorry for the poor things in this heat.

  Spartacus (1960)

• " Trudy felt sorry for her, sorry the matter had been brought up at all.

  Fiction book (1992)

• You know, I almost feel sorry for you.

  The Samaritan (2012)

• Sometimes she even felt sorry for him because that need was so acute in him.

  Fiction book (1991)

• The note said, "I'm sorry this quilt is in such bad shape.

  Fiction book (1992)

• I think you're just feeling sorry for yourself and angry that I didn't play by the rules.

  Fiction book (1991)

• Alas, it's unlikely to do much to stem the nation's sorry trends in marriage.

  Academic text (2011)

• Muslims began to see the sorry state of Muslim countries as symptomatic of the sorry state of Islam.

  Academic text (2007)

• I'm very sorry.

  Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)

• The team's performance was a sorry reflection of their preparation and effort.

Synonyms

B

bad

vssorry

∞ 1.0

Not good in quality or below the usual standard

adds the nuance of being pitiable or deserving sympathy

S

sad

vssorry

842 1.0

Bad or unfortunate and likely to make people feel unhappy

is about being poor or inadequate instead of emotional sadness

M

mediocre

vssorry

109 4.8

Only average in quality and not very good

suggests worse quality and often inspires pity

N

no-good

vssorry

• Informal

88 5.6

Bad or worthless and often causing trouble

focuses on poor quality while sometimes implying pity

P

pitiful

vssorry

54 3.9

So bad or weak that people feel angry and look down on it

is poor in quality but more likely to deserve pity

M

miserable

vssorry

50 2.8

A very small amount or poor quality

is poor in quality and also often evokes pity

D

deplorable

vssorry

38 6.8

Very bad and unacceptable, deserving strong criticism

is about poor quality but less about shocking wrongness

D

distressing

vssorry

• Specialized

36 4.6

Causing strong worry and emotional pain

is about low quality rather than causing emotional pain

L

lamentable

vssorry

• Formal

6 6.7

Very bad and upsetting because it should not have happened

is poor in quality rather than mainly about regret

G

good-for-nothing

vssorry

• Offensive

2 6.8

Not useful or worth much

focuses more on being inadequate and deserving pity

M

meritless

vssorry

1 7.0

Having no value and not deserving praise

is about poor quality and may also be pitiable

N

no-count

vssorry

• Offensive

1 8.9

A person or thing that others see as worthless

stresses low quality and may additionally suggest being pitiable

N

no-account

vssorry

• Offensive

1 9.4

Having little value or importance

is broader covering insignificance and pitiable inadequacy

G

good-for-naught

vssorry

• Offensive

9.9

Not useful and having little value

is about low quality but can also suggest pity

Antonyms

E

excellent

∞ 1.0

Very good and better than most similar things

S

superior

203 4.2

Better in quality or performance than similar things

How Poor

pitiful

54 3.9

pathetic

• Offensive

702 3.9

lousy

• Informal

562 4.1

sorry

686 3.5

poor

838 1.0

Surface Forms

Etymology