more in sorrow than in anger

Idioms  

1. Saddened rather than infuriated by someone's behavior. For example, When Dad learned that Jack had stolen a car, he looked at him more in sorrow than in anger. This expression first appeared in 1603 in Shakespeare's Hamlet (1:2), where Horatio describes to Hamlet the appearance of his father's ghost: “A countenance more in sorrow than in anger.”

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Example Sentences

“Seems as if David Adjmi is a liar and plagiarist,” my friend wrote, more in sorrow than in anger.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 30, 2024

To be clear, Smil writes more in sorrow than in anger.

From Washington Post • May 25, 2022

But with a countenance more in sorrow than in anger, she acknowledged that these political times are “utterly crazy.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 25, 2019

Yet, partly out of loyalty and deep personal affinity, supporters view Mr. Bush more in sorrow than in anger.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2016

The poor lad left me more in sorrow than in anger, nor did we ever meet again.

From Memoirs of the Life of Sir Walter Scott, Volume I (of 10) by Lockhart, J. G. (John Gibson)