pathetic
Pathetic is an English adjective with several related senses. Historically, it describes something that arouses pity, compassion, or sorrow; in this sense it derives from the Greek pathē, “suffering,” via Latin patheticus and the French pathétique, entering English in the early modern period. In rhetoric and literature, the term is connected to pathos, the emotional appeal intended to move an audience.
In contemporary usage, the word also carries a pejorative value. When applied to a person, action, or
The term has a notable literary phrase, the pathetic fallacy, a term popularized by John Ruskin to
Synonyms for the pity sense include pitiable and moving; for the negative sense, words such as inferior,