rue

¹

[roo]

verb (used with object)

rued, ruing 

1. to feel sorrow over; repent of; regret bitterly.

   to rue the loss of opportunities.

2. to wish that (something) had never been done, taken place, etc..

   I rue the day he was born.

verb (used without object)

rued, ruing 

1. to feel sorrow, repentance, or regret.

noun

1. sorrow; repentance; regret.

2. pity or compassion.

rue

²

[roo]

noun

1. any strongly scented plant of the genus Ruta, especially R. graveolens, having yellow flowers and leaves formerly used in medicine.

rue

¹

/ ruː /

verb

1. to feel sorrow, remorse, or regret for (one's own wrongdoing, past events with unpleasant consequences, etc)

noun

1. archaic,  sorrow, pity, or regret

rue

²

/ ruː /

noun

1. Archaic name: herb of grace. any rutaceous plant of the genus Ruta , esp R. graveolens , an aromatic Eurasian shrub with small yellow flowers and evergreen leaves which yield an acrid volatile oil, formerly used medicinally as a narcotic and stimulant Compare goat's-rue meadow rue wall rue

Other Word Forms

• ruer noun
• unrued adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rue¹

before 900; (v.) Middle English ruen, rewen, Old English hrēowan; cognate with Dutch rouwen, German reuen; (noun) Middle English rewe, reowe, Old English hrēow; cognate with Dutch rouw, German Reue; ruth

Origin of rue²

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French < Latin rūta < Greek rhȳtḗ

Word History and Origins

Origin of rue¹

Old English hrēowan ; related to Old Saxon hreuwan , Old High German hriuwan

Origin of rue²

C14: from Old French, from Latin rūta , from Greek rhutē

Example Sentences

Now painfully awake, the broker drank a strong black coffee and rued his change of fortune.

Read more on Literature

‘I rue the day I set foot on that curséd isle!’

Read more on Literature

Wallace rued the fact that progress and violence kept such close company, a contradiction embodied in the exquisite new technologies for killing.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

He sat in the car with his fingers inside his visor as he rued the likely damage to his title hopes.

Read more on BBC

It’s become more fashionable recently to rue the results of American global leadership than to call for another century of it.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal