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 performance, pathetic often means pitifully inadequate, hopeless, or laughably poor, implying contempt. Because of this negative connotation, speakers often choose milder terms such as pitiable, lamentable, or disappointing, depending on intent. The phrase “pathetic attempt” exemplifies the negative register.

The term has a notable literary phrase, the pathetic fallacy, a term popularized by John Ruskin to describe attributing human feelings to nature or inanimate objects in art; it is discussed as a technical device rather than a general moral judgment.

Synonyms for the pity sense include pitiable and moving; for the negative sense, words such as inferior, feeble, or inadequate are common. Antonyms include impressive, admirable, and laudable. The word is used across varieties of English, though the pejorative sense is particularly common in informal speech.