1
as in pitiful
deserving of one's pity
the plight of the homeless family was quite pathetic
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sad
causing unhappiness
a pathetic story that made her cry
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in miserable
deserving pitying scorn (as for inadequacy)
the crowd mercilessly booed the boxer's pathetic performance
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in ridiculous
so foolish or pointless as to be worthy of scornful laughter
the pundit's latest book is another pathetic jumble of factual errors, half-baked political views, and baseless accusations
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pathetic
Also the nonstop sucking up to UNC (and ACC) is a bit pathetic, just like their season.
—
Jim Root, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
His is a kind of pathetic that inspires neither scorn nor pity, but a universal, sorrowful connection — his yearning for a different face is a consideration of what makes a human being legible and thus able to be understood, known, even loved.
—Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 12 Feb. 2025
Here, 288 Romanian mercenaries who surrendered to M23 are counted and sent back to Europe, a pathetic and dejected lot.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
Misery-loves-company is a real thing, pathetic but true.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 20 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pathetic
Jim Root, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
His is a kind of pathetic that inspires neither scorn nor pity, but a universal, sorrowful connection — his yearning for a different face is a consideration of what makes a human being legible and thus able to be understood, known, even loved.
—Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 12 Feb. 2025
Here, 288 Romanian mercenaries who surrendered to M23 are counted and sent back to Europe, a pathetic and dejected lot.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
Misery-loves-company is a real thing, pathetic but true.
—Greg Cote, Miami Herald, 20 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pathetic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pathetic
Adjective
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Its pitiful history includes only one application, less than a decade after its formulation, to strike down a delegation in Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States, 295 U.S. 495 (1935).—
Marie Sapirie,
Forbes,
3 Mar. 2025
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Kubrick’s film is a hell of a black comedy that satirizes the mediocrity of middle-class life: In the director’s world, fathers are pitiful providers, mothers are blandly cheerful (while quietly suffering enormously), and the kids see far more than their parents do.—
Tim Grierson,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Oklahoma represents the sad conclusion of the Trail of Tears, and Tulsa serves as the meeting point for tribal nations—the Osage, Muscogee, and Cherokee.—
Nicholas Lalla,
WIRED,
4 Mar. 2025
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Police sad officers began providing aid to Mitchell, but medics later pronounced him dead at the scene.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacramento Bee,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Its economic position is parlous, its demographic situation is miserable and its military capacities have atrophied, and most of the chest-thumping about a revival of European power is empty talk and fantasy politics.—
Ross Douthat,
The Mercury News,
4 Mar. 2025
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But running — the exercise that can happen almost anywhere, any time and for very little expense — always felt miserable.—
Madeline Holcombe,
CNN,
2 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Ever since its first season in Maui, Mike White’s Emmy-winning Max series has poked not-so-subtle fun at the ridiculous expectations and bizarre social customs of the rich on vacation.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
4 Mar. 2025
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With its heightened dramas, overdone Die Hard references, and ridiculous plot turns, Paradise is pretty preposterous yet asks us to consider it as a sophisticated prestige drama.—
Jen Chaney,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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And another research team, using data from 2015 to 2022, observed in an article available in Energy Research and Social Science that poor income distribution correlates with social unrest when fossil fuel subsidies are removed.—
Aldo Flores-Quiroga,
Forbes,
1 Mar. 2025
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The board meeting featured a slideshow that indicated pre-sales of NASCAR Heat 5 were very poor, 27% behind NASCAR Heat 4 (the previous game in the series) at the same time in development.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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That depressing fact gets reiterated many times, without much variation or additional insight, during Running Point’s 10-episode season.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
27 Feb. 2025
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In this new techno-dating reality, the number of fights sparked by clothes being left on the floor would dramatically decrease, instead being replaced by not-at-all depressing scenes of men standing alone in their apartments talking to a speaker.—
Nic Juarez,
Vulture,
19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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As holidays go, however, Flag Day can feel a bit lame.—
Kevin Fisher-Paulson,
San Francisco Chronicle,
8 June 2021
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My 11-year-old loved watching the pups roll balls and play a giant floor piano, but for non-dog owners (guilty as charged), parts of the series—like dressing dogs in little hats and outfits for a Parisian fashion show—feel lame.—
Tim Neville,
Outside Online,
23 Nov. 2020
Adjective
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With his absurd hair and larger-than-life persona, Trump is a walking meme.—
Gordon G. Chang,
Newsweek,
3 Mar. 2025
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And next year, and for years to come, through trauma and joy, this seemingly absurd ritual is going to be here.—
Edward Segarra,
USA TODAY,
3 Mar. 2025
Articles Related to pathetic
Cite this Entry
“Pathetic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pathetic. Accessed 10 Mar. 2025.
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