Dictionary.com

piteous

[ pit-ee-uhs ]
/ ˈpɪt i əs /
See synonyms for piteous on Thesaurus.com

adjective

evoking or deserving pity; pathetic: piteous cries for help.
Archaic. compassionate.

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Origin of piteous

1250–1300; Middle English; replacing pitous<Old French <Medieval Latin pietōsus.See pity, -ous

synonym study for piteous

1. See pitiful.

OTHER WORDS FROM piteous

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH piteous

piteous , pitiable, pitiful (see synonym study at pitiful)

Words nearby piteous

pitch surface, pitch wart, pitch woo, pitchy, pit dwelling, piteous, Pitesti, pitfall, pit grave, pith, pithead
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to piteous

deplorable, distressing, doleful, dolorous, grievous, heartbreaking, heartrending, lamentable, melancholy, mournful, moving, pitiful, plaintive, poignant, poor, rueful, ruined, sad, sorrowful, woeful

Example sentences from the Web for piteous

British Dictionary definitions for piteous

piteous
/ (ˈpɪtɪəs) /

adjective

exciting or deserving pity
archaic having or expressing pity

Derived forms of piteous

piteously, adverbpiteousness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012