pitiful
Americanadjective
-
evoking or deserving pity.
a pitiful fate.
- Synonyms:
- pathetic, woeful, deplorable, lamentable
- Antonyms:
- delightful
-
evoking or deserving contempt by smallness, poor quality, etc..
pitiful attempts.
- Synonyms:
- despicable, vile, base, low, mean, deplorable
- Antonyms:
- honorable
-
Archaic. full of pity; compassionate.
adjective
-
arousing or deserving pity
-
arousing or deserving contempt
-
archaic full of pity or compassion
Synonym Usage
Pitiful, pitiable, piteous apply to that which excites pity (with compassion or with contempt). That which is pitiful is touching and excites pity or is mean and contemptible: a pitiful leper; a pitiful exhibition of cowardice. Pitiable may mean lamentable, or wretched and paltry: a pitiable hovel. Piteous refers only to that which exhibits suffering and misery, and is therefore heart-rending: piteous poverty.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of pitiful
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at pity, -ful
Explanation
Pitiful means pathetic. If you don't even study for your test, you're making a pretty pitiful effort to do well. The word pitiful can be used in a range of contexts. Most commonly, you'll see it used as an expression of contempt and pity, the way the word pathetic might be used. You might also see it used in reference to something unfortunate or deserving of pity — like a homeless mother and her child, begging for money on the street. Something pitiful might also be something very small or inadequate. A pitiful attempt, is one that isn't good enough.
Vocabulary lists containing pitiful
List 12
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Commonly Confused Words, List 2
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I powered through and passed them on the last block—the most pitiful personal victory ever recorded—and finished in just under 10 hours.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Now, not even 25 years later, the United States Department of Agriculture was forecasting a pitiful 12 million boxes of oranges, the least in more than 100 years, the worst year since last.
From Slate • Apr. 20, 2026
"How pitiful," he said, lowering a thermometer into the water.
From Barron's • Feb. 15, 2026
It also didn’t help that UCLA’s late-game execution was once again pitiful, point guard Donovan Dent doing too little once he reached the rim thanks to a flurry of missed layups and bad passes.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 14, 2025
I ask, thinking of my pitiful little envelope.
From "The Young Man and the Sea" by Rodman Philbrick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
