Synonyms for piteous
- adjective
Most common
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Pitiable — provoking pity, compassion, or sympathy
pitiable, pitiful, pathetic, lamentable, doleful, poor, sorrowful, rueful, mournful, plaintive, heart-rending, heart-breaking, grievous, woeful, deplorable, hapless, distressing, affecting, dolorous, misfortunate, melancholy, cheerless
2. Wretched — of little importance or value
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Provoking pity, compassion, or sympathy.
- adj. 2
Showing devotion to God.
- adj. 3
Of little importance or value.
Choose the right word
Piteous is now rarely used in its earlier sense of feeling pity, but in its derived sense applies to what really excites the emotion; as, a piteous cry.
J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)
Example sentences
- pathetic The education in that institute is simply pathetic.
- pitiful The pitiful tale fetched tears from the girl.
- lamentable And now let's discuss the lamentable state of affairs.
- pitiable Jason is no bad guy, but rather a pitiable loser.
- tender It was put out to tender, and an Italian firm won.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| piteous | rising | |
| pathetic | rising | |
| pitiful | rising | |
| lamentable | falling | |
| pitiable | steady | |
| tender | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 4 letters
- mean1, poor1
- 5 letters
- pious2
- 6 letters
- tender2, inward2, devout2, paltry2, woeful2, rueful2
- 7 letters
- pitiful3, hapless2, doleful2
- 8 letters
- pathetic3, wretched2, grievous2, mournful2, pitiable4, dolorous
- 9 letters
- affecting3, miserable4, worthless2, sorrowful3, plaintive2, cheerless, devoutful
- 10 letters
- melancholy4, deplorable4, lamentable4
- 11 letters
- distressing3
- 12 letters
- contemptible4, misfortunate
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (pious2 = 2 syllables).