compassion
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
Usage
What does compassion mean? Compassion is a feeling of sympathy or pity for others, especially one that makes you want to help them.Compassion is sometimes used interchangeably with sympathy, which most most commonly means the sharing of emotions with someone else, especially sadness. Both words are used in the context of feeling sorry for people who are in negative situations. But compassion is often understood as a feeling that motivates you to help them.The opposite of compassion is often thought to be indifference or cold-heartedness.Someone who has compassion for others can be described as compassionate. Being compassionate typically means you care and you want to help.Example: We should treat people with compassion because that’s how we want to be treated.
Related Words
See sympathy.
Other Word Forms
- compassionless adjective
- uncompassion noun
- uncompassioned adjective
Etymology
Origin of compassion
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English (from Anglo-French ), from Late Latin compassiōn- (stem of compassiō ). See com-, passion
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“I leave with a huge amount of compassion for the rest of the agents and staff at the agency, who are being left with a situation that impacts all of our work and livelihoods.”
From Los Angeles Times
In a post on Instagram, Thompson said the "absolutely extraordinary" story was "difficult to read out loud" but that it "inspires courage and compassion but also crucially demands change".
From Barron's
Through this journey of self-exploration I have come to realize how coercive gender-identity ideology was for me, disguising harm as compassion.
I look up at Emma, expecting to see understanding or compassion.
From Literature
Marge moves about the world with a distinct compassion.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
