piteous
/ˈpɪ.ti.əs/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.81 in modern English
9
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
1
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
Provoking pity, compassion, or sympathy.
Example Sentences
- "[…] with his strong arms He fastened on my neck, and bellowed out As he’d burst heaven; threw him on my father; Told the most piteous tale of Lear and him That ever ear receiv’d;"
- "1782, Frances Burney, Cecilia, London: T. Payne & Son and T. Cadell, Volume 2, Book 3, Chapter 4, p. 51, […] my strength, madam, is almost all gone away, and when I do any hard work, it’s quite a piteous sight to see me, for I am all in a tremble after it, just as if I had an ague […]"
- "In the deep, still darkness of midnight, I have been often aroused by the dead, heavy footsteps and the piteous cries of the chained gangs that passed our door."
- "“[…] you go out to beg, first smearing yourself with mud and filth to make yourselves as piteous as you can.”"
- "As fear chilled him to the bone, he loosed a final piteous groan."
- "For the Lord kan delyuere piteuouse men fro temptacioun, and kepe wickid men in to the dai of dom to be turmentid;"
Etymology
From Middle English pitous, from Old French piteus, pitus.
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: pitous, piteus
Usage
Inflected Forms
more piteous (comparative)
most piteous (superlative)