1
as in heartbroken
expressing or suggesting mourning
gave me a regretful look when I told him we had to move my mother to a nursing home
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sorry
feeling sorrow for a wrong that one has done
was truly regretful that she had yelled at him
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of regretful
The story line is primarily a way to explore Annie’s insecurities, with Hughie made to feel guilty and regretful about his dalliance with the doppelgänger instead of ever getting to process his own reaction to the revelation.
—
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Neither damning nor satiric, W. is oddly wistful, almost regretful — rare sentiments in a Stone film.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 17 Feb. 2025
Reubens is candid and perhaps regretful about some of his controlling behavior on the show, and its eventual demise; ditto some of the choices made on Big Top Pee-Wee.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Her scenes with Burstein are rich and funny and regretful; those with June (Jordan Tyson) and Louise (Joy Woods) are withering.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretful
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Neither damning nor satiric, W. is oddly wistful, almost regretful — rare sentiments in a Stone film.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 17 Feb. 2025
Reubens is candid and perhaps regretful about some of his controlling behavior on the show, and its eventual demise; ditto some of the choices made on Big Top Pee-Wee.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Her scenes with Burstein are rich and funny and regretful; those with June (Jordan Tyson) and Louise (Joy Woods) are withering.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for regretful
Adjective
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Downs recovered from her injuries but remained heartbroken over the loss of her friends and overwhelmed with survivor's guilt.—
Laurel Morales,
NPR,
18 Apr. 2025
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King was on an errand to pick up a snack for his mom when he was shot, heartbroken relatives said.—
Thomas Tracy,
New York Daily News,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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In the moment, Fleury joked that Ovechkin’s on-ice salute was because the Russian sniper was sorry to see his favorite foil retire.—
Jess Myers,
Twin Cities,
13 Apr. 2025
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Being objective about Trump is not in the Sun Sentinel’s opinion lexicon — sorry to say.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
12 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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At the vigil, the atmosphere appeared to be both mournful and celebratory of Scooter’s life.—
Amber Corrine,
VIBE.com,
4 Apr. 2025
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Season four will be the last for The Righteous Gemstones, and there are signs in this mournful (and vulgar/hilarious) episode that this extremely American empire may be going the way of Kelvin’s treehouse.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The young Jamie desperately wants his father’s approval, but his dad is ashamed of him.—
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox,
Forbes.com,
5 Apr. 2025
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Waging war on Denmark is wrong and will damage U.S. defense and foreign relations for decades We Americans should be ashamed of ourselves and of our government.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
29 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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Eric claims to be remorseful, and makes a big point of it.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
5 Apr. 2025
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Hoffman acknowledges the crime and is deeply remorseful, his attorney, Cecelia Kappel, told USA TODAY.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA TODAY,
18 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The squads will rotate funeral duty to maintain their health.—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2025
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Many of the items had been burned, suggesting that they might have been torched upon a funeral pyre, but no human remains were found amid the assemblage.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Following the producers’ warning, Rourke was apologetic.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
13 Apr. 2025
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The drafts, sent back and forth between Bub and trustees, shift dramatically in tone from angry and defensive to conciliatory and apologetic to concise and professional.—
Carly Flandro,
Idaho Statesman,
4 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Regretful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/regretful. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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