Synonyms for Pity

Updated 2026-10-12 · Synonyms List editorial team

Quick answer: Pity is a word expressing sorrow for someone else's suffering or misfortune. You can use it to describe deep sympathy for a hard situation. Here are many synonyms for pity, organized by tone and meaning to help you find the exact right word for your needs.

Closest Synonyms for Pity

Sympathy: Shows shared feelings of sorrow without necessarily feeling pain yourself, like showing sympathy for a lost pet.
Compassion: Combines sympathy with a strong desire to help, such as showing compassion to a homeless person.
Regret: Focuses on sadness about a past event or mistake, like feeling regret for a harsh comment made yesterday.
Sorrow: Describes the feeling of deep sadness itself, often felt by those who lost a loved one.
Pangs: Refers to sharp, sudden feelings of sadness or regret, like pangs of guilt over breaking a promise.
Soreness: Metaphorically describes emotional pain, similar to the physical soreness felt after a long workout.
Remorse: Indicates deep regret for one's own wrong actions, like the remorse felt after lying to a friend.
Miseration: An archaic word for extreme sorrow, often used in literature to describe deep misery.
Penitence: Describes a feeling of sorrow for wrongdoing, often accompanied by a wish to make amends.
Dole: Can imply pitying someone so much you feel compelled to give them aid or food.
Lament: Involves expressing sorrow or regret, often through speech or writing about a loss.

Formal Synonyms for Pity

Condolence: A formal expression of sympathy offered to someone who has suffered a loss, like sending condolences to a grieving widow.
Commiseration: Shared feeling of distress regarding a problem, such as offering commiseration to a colleague who failed a project.
Compunction: Feeling of unease or guilt about a past action, making one hesitate to repeat it.
Misery: Extreme distress or suffering, describing the formal state of someone in deep pain.
Affliction: A cause of pain or suffering, often used to describe the formal burden of a chronic illness.
Dolefulness: The quality of being sad or sorrowful, describing a formal atmosphere of grief.
Contrition: Genuine repentance for wrongdoings, showing a formal and deep change of heart.

Informal Synonyms for Pity

Sorry: A common way to express feeling bad for someone, like saying sorry to a friend who spilled coffee.
Awful: Can describe feeling bad for someone, as in feeling awful for a friend who got the flu.
Mean: Often used to describe feelings of contempt or low regard, such as feeling mean toward someone who failed.
Rubbish: Used to dismiss someone as unworthy, like calling a bad movie rubbish or a sad situation rubbish.
Tacky: Describes something as showing bad taste, like feeling tacky for a friend who lost their job.
Shabby: Implies something is poorly made or treated, like describing a shabby excuse for a friend's behavior.
Sloppy: Describes careless or untidy behavior, like feeling sloppy about a friend who missed a deadline.
Cheesy: Often used to describe something as cringeworthy or insincere, like feeling cheesy for a friend trying too hard.
Stupid: Can describe someone acting foolishly, like feeling stupid for a friend who made a silly mistake.
Pathetic: Describes someone as deserving sympathy due to weakness or misfortune, often with a negative tone.

Antonyms for Pity

Joy
Delight
Happiness
Cheer
Glory
Ecstasy
Bliss
Glee
Rejoicing
Triumph

How to Pick the Right Synonym

Choosing the right synonym for pity depends on the depth of your feelings and the context of your message. If you want to show deep concern and a desire to help, use words like compassion or sympathy. For formal situations or official expressions of grief, choose terms like condolence or commiseration. Avoid informal words like pathetic or tacky if you wish to remain respectful. Always consider whether your word shows shared pain or just sorrow, as this changes the tone of your communication significantly.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between sympathy and pity?

Sympathy involves sharing feelings with someone else, often implying a connection. Pity, however, can imply looking down on someone's suffering and does not necessarily involve shared emotions or a desire to help.

Which word is best for formal condolences?

Condolence is the best choice for formal situations, such as sending a card or letter to someone who has lost a loved one. It conveys deep respect and shared sorrow without being overly casual.

Can pity be used as a verb?

Yes, pity is commonly used as a verb. You might say, I pity him because he failed the test. It functions similarly to other verbs like regret or sorrow when describing an action or reaction.

Is compassion always better than pity?

Compassion is often viewed as better because it includes a desire to help, whereas pity can feel detached or judgmental. However, pity is still a valid emotion to express sorrow for another's hardship without needing to fix it.