Bedauern

Bedauern is a German noun meaning regret or sorrow about a past event or situation, and the corresponding verb bedauern meaning to regret or feel remorse. The noun das Bedauern refers to the feeling itself or to expressions of regret; it is commonly used with phrases such as mit großem Bedauern to indicate sorrow in official statements or formal contexts. The verb bedauern is transitive: ich bedauere etwas means I regret something, and it forms standard tenses as bedauerst, bedauert, bedauerten, and the past participle bedauert. In everyday language, people often use the related phrase es tut mir leid for milder or more personal apologies.

Etymology and usage history: Bedauern is of Germanic origin. The verb bedauern is attested in older stages of German (for example in Middle High German as bedâuren/bedâren), sharing the core sense of lamenting or feeling sorrow about a real or hypothetical outcome. The noun emerged from this verb form to designate the state or expression of such sorrow.

Differentiation and nuance: Bereuen generally connotes moral remorse or a wish to undo one’s own actions, whereas Bedauern can refer to regret about events, circumstances, or outcomes that may extend beyond one’s direct responsibility. Trauer denotes deep mourning and longer-lasting sorrow rather than a situational regret. In philosophy and psychology, regret is analyzed as an affective state involving evaluation of past actions and often counterfactual thinking. In public discourse, Bedauern is a conventional phrasing to convey respectful or formal sorrow.