sympathize
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to be in sympathy or agreement of feeling; share in a feeling (often followed bywith ).
-
to feel a compassionate sympathy, as for suffering or trouble (often followed bywith ).
-
to express sympathy or condole (often followed bywith ).
-
to be in approving accord, as with a person or cause.
to sympathize with a person's aims.
- Synonyms:
- support, back, favor, approve, understand
-
to agree, correspond, or accord.
verb
-
to feel or express compassion or sympathy (for); commiserate
he sympathized with my troubles
-
to share or understand the sentiments or ideas (of); be in sympathy (with)
Usage
What does sympathize mean? To sympathize with someone is to feel sympathy for them—to share their emotions, especially sadness. This is usually understood to mean that you feel bad for them because they are in a negative situation. The word sympathize can also mean to offer one’s sympathies or condolences, such as to someone who is in mourning. Sympathize also sometimes means to be supportive of or loyal to someone or something, such as a leader or cause, as in Many working class voters sympathize with the senator’s platform. The word sympathizer is especially used to refer to someone who sympathizes in this way. Someone who sympathizes can be described as sympathetic. Sympathetic can also be used to describe someone who causes you to sympathize with them. Some people use the word sympathize interchangeably or in overlapping ways with the word empathize, which means to have empathy—to imagine or try to deeply understand what someone is feeling or what it’s like to be in their situation. However, others distinguish the two terms by emphasizing the importance of empathizing with others (feeling their pain) as opposed to sympathizing with them (feeling sorry for them). Example: I’ve experienced the same thing, so I can sympathize.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
sympathizernoun
-
presympathizeverb (used without object)
-
nonsympathizingadjective
-
unsympathizedadjective
-
unsympathizingadjective
-
nonsympathizinglyadverb
-
sympathizinglyadverb
-
unsympathizinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
sympathizesimple
-
sympathizessimple
-
have sympathizedperfect
-
has sympathizedperfect
-
am sympathizingprogressive
-
are sympathizingprogressive
-
is sympathizingprogressive
-
have been sympathizingperfect progressive
-
has been sympathizingperfect progressive
Past
-
sympathizedsimple
-
had sympathizedperfect
-
was sympathizingprogressive
-
were sympathizingprogressive
-
had been sympathizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sympathize
First recorded in 1580–90; from Middle French sympathiser; from sympath(ie) sympathy + -iser -ize
Explanation
When you sympathize, you care about how someone else feels during a time of trouble. If you sympathize with your brother, whose best friend is moving away, you understand why he's feeling sad. When you sympathize, you care, so you might sympathize with the victims of an earthquake in a foreign country or a child who's waiting for her turn on a merry-go-round. Sympathize comes from the Greek sympathes, have a fellow feeling for. It's sometimes confused with empathize, which means putting yourself in someone else's shoes, rather than simply caring about them.
Vocabulary lists containing sympathize
Nothing But the Truth
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Martian Chronicles
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Charles and Emma
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
See Examples For:
Many Mexicans tend to sympathize with Cuba because of historic concerns about U.S. expansionism.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
Still, the movie seems to sympathize with many Americans’ misplaced faith in the remoteness of nuclear war.
From Slate ● Mar. 13, 2026
"It's quite easy to make a version of that story where he's a sort of toxic incel male conspiracy theorist nut who you don't really sympathize with," he told AFP.
From Barron's ● Mar. 1, 2026
But it’s hard not to sympathize with Sylvia too.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2026
Aru didn’t think it was possible to sympathize with a palace, and yet she did.
From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi
The fashion designer and bridal boutique owner sympathizes with retailers grappling with the penny problem.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2025
While he sympathizes with the occasional need to chill at home, he also notes it's unsettling that it's a wildly popular discourse.
From Salon ● Jan. 19, 2025
The 34-year-old Mira Costa alumna who also starred for Stanford’s indoor team sympathizes with Ross’ quick comeback.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 16, 2024
“I can’t help questioning whether he sympathizes with the public indignant over the wrongful death of the marine at all,” Park said.
From Seattle Times ● May 9, 2024
Of her three children, Celia sympathizes most with her son.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
He not only sympathized with our loss but also shared our heartbreak as he described his own very personal connection to the Palisades fire.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 8, 2026
Jeremias, a nurse, said she sympathized with Mangione’s feeling of hopelessness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 30, 2025
In 2023, according to New York Times polling, 34 percent of Democrats sympathized with Israel and 31 percent with Palestinians.
From Slate ● Oct. 23, 2025
Many people sympathized with the workers and even called for Costco to start revoking memberships.
From Salon ● Aug. 29, 2024
I sympathized with her—she was trying to do an impossible job: She was not an English-as-a-second-language teacher.
From "How Dare the Sun Rise" by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
Hitchcock beguiles us into sympathizing with the psychopathic Bruno.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 10, 2026
Another supervisor came out and tried to defuse the situation, half lecturing, half sympathizing.
From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2025
While fully sympathizing with her grief, many women have called Erika Kirk out for not being fully transparent in her self-portrait.
From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2025
Protesters gather outside the facility regularly, and in May, Casper Mayor Bruce Knell apologized for a Facebook post about the clinic some interpreted as sympathizing with the fire attack.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 21, 2023
This era became known as the Red Scare, and many ordinary citizens were accused of sympathizing with the Communists.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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.
