sympathy
/ˈsɪm.pə.θi/ IELTSAcademic
noun
Sympathy is care and understanding for someone who is unhappy, hurt, or in pain. It can also mean shared feeling or agreement with another person's situation.
- She showed sympathy after his mother died.
- I have sympathy for people in stressful jobs.
- There was little sympathy for his complaint.
Adinary Nuance
Sympathy is not the same as pity. Pity can sound like you feel sorry from above, while sympathy sounds warmer and more respectful. It is also different from empathy: empathy means you can imagine or feel someone else's emotion more deeply. In polite writing, sympathy often sounds kinder and more balanced than pity.
In other languages
- Vietnamese
- sự thông cảm
- Spanish
- simpatía
- Chinese
- 同情
- Japanese
- 同情
- Korean
- 동정
Etymology
Sympathy comes from Greek sympatheia, meaning “feeling with.” It entered English in the 1500s through Latin and French.
Common phrases
show sympathyexpress sympathysympathy for someonea message of sympathy
Synonyms
Related words
Frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between sympathy and empathy?
- Sympathy means you care about someone's feelings. Empathy means you try to feel what they feel.
- Is sympathy a polite word?
- Yes. It is polite and common in both speaking and writing.
- Can I say 'I have sympathy for you'?
- Yes, but it can sound a little formal. 'I feel for you' is more natural in casual speech.
- Is sympathy used in condolences?
- Yes. People often write or say sympathy after a death or sad event.