SORRY: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for SORRY?

Need another word that means the same as “sorry”? Find 63 synonyms and 30 related words for “sorry” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Sorry” are: deplorable, distressing, lamentable, pitiful, sad, blue, dark, dingy, disconsolate, dismal, drab, drear, dreary, gloomy, grim, meritless, no-account, no-count, no-good, bad, regretful, unhappy, sorrowful, distressed, upset, depressed, downcast, miserable, downhearted, disheartened, dejected, down, despondent, despairing, heartbroken, inconsolable, grief-stricken, full of pity, sympathetic, pitying, compassionate, moved, commiserative, consoling, empathetic, caring, concerned, understanding, remorseful, contrite, repentant, rueful, penitent, apologetic, abject, guilty, guilt-ridden, ashamed, shamefaced, sheepish, in sackcloth and ashes, afraid, pitiable

Sorry as an Adjective

Definitions of "Sorry" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “sorry” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

  • Without merit.
  • Used as a polite request that someone should repeat something that one has failed to hear or understand.
  • Feeling sad or distressed through sympathy with someone else's misfortune.
  • Causing dejection.
  • Feeling regret or penitence.
  • Bad; unfortunate.
  • Without merit; of little or no value or use.
  • Feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone.
  • Filled with compassion for.
  • In a poor or pitiful state.
  • Unpleasant and regrettable, especially on account of incompetence or misbehaviour.
  • Used to express apology.

Synonyms of "Sorry" as an adjective (63 Words)

abjectShowing humiliation or submissiveness.
Abject cowardice.
afraidFilled with regret or concern; used often to soften an unpleasant statement.
She was afraid that he would be angry.
apologeticConstituting a formal defence or justification of a theory or doctrine.
An apologetic smile.
ashamedEmbarrassed or guilty because of one’s actions, characteristics, or associations.
I m ashamed to say I followed him home.
badFeeling physical discomfort or pain tough is occasionally used colloquially for bad.
A bad cut.
blueOf a ski run of the second lowest level of difficulty as indicated by blue markers positioned along it.
He s feeling blue.
caringDisplaying kindness and concern for others.
A caring and invaluable friend.
commiserativeFeeling or expressing sympathy.
Made commiserative clicking sounds with his tongue.
compassionateFeeling or showing sympathy and concern for others.
She tried to sound compassionate.
concernedInvolved in or affected by or having a claim to or share in.
A memorandum to those concerned.
consolingAffording comfort or solace.
His sister gave him a consoling pat on the back.
contriteFeeling or expressing remorse at the recognition that one has done wrong.
A contrite tone.
darkHaving a dark hue.
Dark colors like wine red or navy blue.
dejectedAffected or marked by low spirits.
Is dejected but trying to look cheerful.
deplorableDeserving strong condemnation; completely unacceptable.
Deplorable housing conditions in the inner city.
depressedFilled with melancholy and despondency.
The market is depressed.
despairingShowing the loss of all hope.
The last despairing plea of the condemned criminal.
despondentIn low spirits from loss of hope or courage.
Despondent about his failure.
dingyDiscolored by impurities; not bright and clear is often used in combination.
A dirty or dingy white.
disconsolateCausing dejection.
A disconsolate winter landscape.
disheartenedHaving lost determination or confidence; dispirited.
The disheartened instructor tried vainly to arouse their interest.
dismal(of a person or their mood) gloomy.
His dismal mood was not dispelled by finding the house empty.
distressedImpoverished.
He dropped out of the race clearly distressed and having difficulty breathing.
distressingCausing anxiety, sorrow or pain; upsetting.
Distressing or disturbing news.
downDenoting a flavour variety of stable quark having relatively low mass and an electric charge of 1 3 In the Standard Model protons and neutrons are composed of up and down quarks.
The down escalator.
downcast(of a person’s eyes) looking downwards.
A downcast glance.
downheartedFilled with melancholy and despondency.
Fans must not be downhearted even though we lost.
drabLacking brightness or color; dull.
Life was drab compared with the more exciting life style overseas.
drearCausing dejection.
drearyLacking in liveliness or charm or surprise.
A series of dreary dinner parties.
empatheticShowing empathy or ready comprehension of others’ states.
I have been touched by the empathetic response to my bad luck.
full of pityComplete in extent or degree and in every particular.
gloomyDark or poorly lit, especially so as to appear depressing or frightening.
A gloomy corridor badly lit by oil lamps.
grief-strickenSorrowful through loss or deprivation.
grimHarshly uninviting or formidable in manner or appearance- J.M.Barrie.
Took a grim view of the economy.
guilt-riddenFeeling or revealing a sense of guilt.
guiltyConscious of, affected by, or revealing a feeling of guilt.
Secret guilty deeds.
heartbrokenSuffering from overwhelming distress.
He was heartbroken at the thought of leaving the house.
in sackcloth and ashesCurrently fashionable.
inconsolable(of a person or their grief) not able to be comforted or alleviated.
His widow Jane was inconsolable.
lamentable(of circumstances or conditions) very bad; deplorable.
The industry is in a lamentable state.
meritlessWithout merit.
It s not an entirely meritless idea.
miserableDeserving or inciting pity.
Their happiness made Anne feel even more miserable.
movedBeing excited or provoked to the expression of an emotion.
Too moved to speak.
no-accountWithout merit.
no-countWithout merit.
no-goodWithout merit.
penitentFeeling or showing sorrow and regret for having done wrong; repentant.
A penitent expression.
pitiableDeserving or inciting pity- Galsworthy.
Pitiable homeless children.
pitifulDeserving or arousing pity.
A pitiful attempt to impress her.
pityingFeeling or showing sorrow for someone’s misfortunes, often with an implication of disdain or mild contempt.
He gave her a pitying look.
regretfulFeeling or showing regret.
Felt regretful over his vanished youth.
remorsefulFeeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offenses.
The defendant was remorseful for what he had done.
repentantExpressing or feeling sincere regret and remorse; remorseful.
He is truly repentant for his incredible naivety and stupidity.
ruefulExpressing sorrow or regret, especially in a wry or humorous way.
She gave a rueful grin.
sadOf things that make you feel sad.
She doesn t like sad movies.
shamefacedShowing a sense of guilt- Eric Linklater.
The hangdog and shamefaced air of the retreating enemy.
sheepishLike or suggestive of a sheep in docility or stupidity or meekness or timidity.
A sheepish grin.
sorrowfulFeeling or showing grief.
The sorrowful news of his father s death.
sympatheticRelating to or denoting the part of the autonomic nervous system consisting of nerves arising from ganglia near the middle part of the spinal cord supplying the internal organs blood vessels and glands and balancing the action of the parasympathetic nerves.
Buildings that were sympathetic to their surroundings.
understandingCharacterized by understanding based on comprehension and discernment and empathy.
A kind and understanding man.
unhappyGeneralized feeling of distress.
The unhappy truth.
upsetThrown into a state of disarray or confusion.
The Bills upset victory over the Houston Oilers.

Usage Examples of "Sorry" as an adjective

  • We feel so ashamed that we keep quiet about the whole sorry business.
  • A sorry state of affairs.
  • I'm sorry if I was a bit brusque.
  • I'm sorry—you were saying?
  • I was sorry to hear about what happened to your family.
  • He looks a sorry sight with his broken jaw.
  • A sorry horse.
  • Sorry—I was trying not to make a noise.
  • He said he was sorry he had upset me.
  • A sorry excuse.
  • I felt sorry for the poor boys working for him.

Associations of "Sorry" (30 Words)

apologizeExpress regret for something that one has done wrong.
He apologized for the many typoes.
bemoanRegret strongly.
It was no use bemoaning her lot.
deplorableBad; unfortunate.
Deplorable housing conditions in the inner city.
deploreFeel or express strong disapproval of (something.
We deplore all violence.
dirgeA lament for the dead, especially one forming part of a funeral rite.
After his ten minute dirge the audience booed.
dolefulExpressing sorrow; mournful.
A doleful look.
elegy(in modern literature) a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.
griefTrouble or annoyance.
Her death was a great grief to John.
grieveFeel grief.
She grieved for her father.
jeremiadA long, mournful complaint or lamentation; a list of woes.
A jeremiad against any form of government.
lamentA mournful poem a lament for the dead.
He was lamenting the death of his infant daughter.
lamentable(of circumstances or conditions) very bad; deplorable.
A lamentable decision.
lamentationA cry of sorrow and grief.
Scenes of lamentation.
maudlin(of a book, film, or song) highly sentimental.
A bout of maudlin self pity.
miserable(of a person) wretchedly unhappy or uncomfortable.
He felt depressed and miserable.
mournObserve the customs of mourning after the death of a loved one.
She is mourning her dead child.
mourningBlack clothes worn as an expression of sorrow when someone dies.
She s still in mourning after the death of her husband.
patheticArousing pity, especially through vulnerability or sadness.
His ball control was pathetic.
pitifulDeserving or inciting pity.
A pitiful fate.
pityAn unfortunate development.
What a pity we can t be friends.
regretExpress with regret.
I regret I can t come to the party.
regretfulFeeling or showing regret.
Regretful over mistakes she had made.
regrettable(of conduct or an event) giving rise to regret; undesirable; unwelcome.
Irresponsible and regrettable actions.
sadOf things that make you feel sad Christina Rossetti.
Better by far that you should forget and smile Than that you should remember and be sad.
sadnessThe quality of excessive mournfulness and uncheerfulness.
It is one of life s sadnesses.
sorrowAn event or circumstance that causes sorrow.
He tried to express his sorrow at her loss.
sorrowfulFeeling or showing grief.
Sorrowful widows.
threnodyA lament.
A brooding threnody to urban desolation.
unhappyCausing discomfort.
An unhappy marriage.
wretchedDeserving or inciting pity.
A wretched life.

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