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commiserative

commiserative

7.9
Showing sympathy to someone who feels sad or has trouble
  • adjective
  • /kəˈmɪzəˌreɪtɪv/
translation icon : compasivo
  • During the meeting, his commiserative remarks about the project's setbacks helped the team feel supported.

Examples

  • The teacher's commiserative comments showed she understood the challenges her students faced.

  • When Disney's "John Carter" was released earlier this year, it was a commiserative failure of colossal proportions.

    Blog text (13)
  • Among all the thoughtful and commiserative comments on the previous food post, one in particular stood out for me: "I keep three basic goals in mind: to make things (A) *I* like to eat; (B) requiring minimal preparation; and (C) minimal clean-up."

    Blog text (20)
  • She gave him a commiserative smile after hearing about his recent struggles.

Synonyms

sympathetic
vscommiserative
152 3.4

Feeling or showing kindness and understanding to someone who is upset

is focused on sympathy for others' misfortune rather than general care
empathetic
vscommiserative
30 4.4

To understand and share other people's feelings

is focused on sympathy for misfortune rather than sharing others' feelings
empathic
vscommiserative
15 4.6

To understand and share other people's feelings

is about feeling sympathy for misfortune rather than actively sharing feelings
consoling
vscommiserative
1 3.4

Giving comfort to someone who is sad or upset

is about feeling or expressing sympathy rather than directly providing comfort
consolatory
vscommiserative
1 7.8

Giving comfort to someone who feels sad or disappointed

is more about expressing feeling for misfortune rather than intending to comfort

Antonyms

14 5.9

Not showing sympathy or care for other people's feelings

Not feeling sorry for someone or caring about their problems

How Sympathetic

compassionate
151 3.7
consoling
1 3.4
commiserative
7.9
sympathetic
152 3.4

Surface Forms

commiserative positive

Morphology

commiserative = commiserate (transparent) = commiserate + ive

The adjective is formed from the verb 'commiserate' with the regular adjectival suffix '-ive', yielding the predictable meaning 'expressing sympathy'.

Etymology

Commiserative comes from Latin parts com- ('with') and miserari ('to pity') and uses the same root as miserable. So, a commiserative look or word is one that shows you share someone else's sadness.