pathetic

Từ điển Oxford Advanced Learner 8th

path·et·ic BrE [pəˈθetɪk] NAmE [pəˈθetɪk] adjective
1. making you feel pity or sadness
Syn: ↑pitiful
•a pathetic and lonely old man
•The starving children were a pathetic sight.
2. (informal, disapproving)weak and not successful
Syn: ↑feeble
•a pathetic excuse
•She made a pathetic attempt to smile.
•I know it sounds pathetic, but I can't ride a bike.
•You're pathetic!
Derived Word: ↑pathetically

Word Origin:
[pathetic pathetically] late 16th cent. (in the sense ‘affecting the emotions’): via late Latin from Greek pathētikos ‘sensitive’, based on pathos ‘suffering’.

Example Bank:
•It was a rather pathetic excuse.
•The whole thing is absolutely pathetic.
•There was something a little pathetic about her.
•What a pathetic little wimp you are, Graham!
•I know it sounds pathetic, but I can't ride a bike.
•She thought he looked a pathetic figure of a man.
•That was an absolutely pathetic excuse.
•You're pathetic!

• Từ đồng nghĩa / Synonyms:
  ridiculous, silly, pitiable, pitiful, hapless, miserable, misfortunate, piteous, poor, wretched