commiserate
verb
com·mis·er·ate
kə-ˈmi-zə-ˌrāt 
commiserated; commiserating
: to feel or express sorrow or compassion for
commiseratingly
adverb
Synonyms
Examples of commiserate in a Sentence
"Did you enjoy your breakfast?" "The eggs were runny." "I know." The woman commiserated. "I was thinking, I should just have barged into the kitchen and done them myself."
—
Alice Munro, Runaway, (2004) 2005
The other potters seemed to slump as one into dejection, all but abandoning their work in favor of long, lugubrious visits to the wine shop, where they commiserated with one another.
—Linda Sue Park, A Single Shard, (2001) 2003
"I been readin' about it," she said, referring to the recent breakup of my marriage. … "It's too bad," she commiserated.
—Arthur Miller, Timebends, 1987
The pain of losing is diverting. So is the thrill of winning. Winning, however, is lonelier, because those you've taken money from are not apt to commiserate with you.
—David Mamet, New York Times Magazine, 20 Apr. 1986
The players commiserated over their loss in the championship game.
Alice Munro, Runaway, (2004) 2005
The other potters seemed to slump as one into dejection, all but abandoning their work in favor of long, lugubrious visits to the wine shop, where they commiserated with one another.
—Linda Sue Park, A Single Shard, (2001) 2003
"I been readin' about it," she said, referring to the recent breakup of my marriage. … "It's too bad," she commiserated.
—Arthur Miller, Timebends, 1987
The pain of losing is diverting. So is the thrill of winning. Winning, however, is lonelier, because those you've taken money from are not apt to commiserate with you.
—David Mamet, New York Times Magazine, 20 Apr. 1986
The players commiserated over their loss in the championship game.
Recent Examples on the Web
What follows is a lovely back-and-forth, with the two commiserating about all the ways the world has done them wrong.
—Marah Eakin, Vulture, 27 June 2024
In her comment section, other people commiserated over how their IUD insertions had brought the worst pain of their lives.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA TODAY, 25 Oct. 2024
Rosa and Yancy commiserate over Izzy’s dead body, and both come to the absolutely logical conclusion that his death was not a suicide.
—Erin Qualey, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Lavin’s video has been viewed over 2 million times on TikTok alone, which doesn’t include its virality on sites Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) — with thousands of comments either commiserating with her experience or straight-up blaming her for missing apparent cues.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for commiserate 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Marah Eakin, Vulture, 27 June 2024
In her comment section, other people commiserated over how their IUD insertions had brought the worst pain of their lives.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA TODAY, 25 Oct. 2024
Rosa and Yancy commiserate over Izzy’s dead body, and both come to the absolutely logical conclusion that his death was not a suicide.
—Erin Qualey, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2024
Lavin’s video has been viewed over 2 million times on TikTok alone, which doesn’t include its virality on sites Instagram and X (formerly Twitter) — with thousands of comments either commiserating with her experience or straight-up blaming her for missing apparent cues.
—Ct Jones, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for commiserate
Dictionary Entries Near commiserate
Cite this Entry
“Commiserate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commiserate. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
commiserate
verb
com·mis·er·ate
kə-ˈmiz-ə-ˌrāt
commiserated; commiserating
: to feel or express sorrow or sympathy : sympathize
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share