She felt sorry for him. [=she felt sympathy and concern for him because of his situation, problems, etc.]
He told me to stop feeling sorry for myself. [=to stop indulging in self-pity]
b
: feeling regret or penitence
He was sorry about what he had said.
"I wanted to apologize," she said, "for my abominable rudeness in laughing at you just now. It was idiotic of me and I don't know why I did it. I'm sorry." P. G. Wodehouse
"… I'm so sorry, but the tongs were too hot, and so I've made a mess," groaned poor Jo, regarding the little black pancakes with tears of regret. Louisa May Alcott
I am sorry we have ever differed, and extremely sorry I have ever given you offence. Charles Dickens
—used to express polite regret
I'm sorry, but I think you're wrong.I'm sorry to interrupt you.
—used to introduce disappointing or bad news in a polite way
I'm sorry, but we won't be able to come.
— used as an apology for a minor fault or offense
Oh, sorry—that was clumsy of me.I'm late again. Sorry about that. [=I'm sorry; I apologize]
Rilla remembered one moonlit evening of childhood when she had said to her mother, "The moon just looks like a sorry, sorry face." Lucy Maud Montgomery
3
: inspiring sorrow, pity, scorn, or ridicule : pitiful
Their affairs were in a sorry state.
Lawrence blushed, and then smiled awkwardly. A man in love is a sorry spectacle. Agatha Christie
In view of the sorry treatment of the Native Americans of the US, it is time that their voice was heard a little more clearly in contemporary American society. Tim Flannery
… had been on her way to work when her rusted-out, … sorry excuse for a car … choked on its last drop of gasoline, then died. Ingrid Law
I'm sorry if I offended you. She was sorry to hear about their divorce. I'm sorry for your loss. I'm sorry for saying that. I'm sorry that I wasted your time. What a sorry state of affairs we're in now. That's the sorriest excuse I've heard. See More
Recent Examples on the WebOn the one hand (sorry), there are the vaccine double-downers. Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 15 Sep. 2022 Genuinely sorry to see so many great people go, but, at the end of the day, only two are going through. Charles Trepany, USA TODAY, 8 Sep. 2022 The three-month outlook shows increased chances for above-average temperatures for all of Alabama and for much of the U.S. (sorry). Leigh Morgan, al, 1 Sep. 2022 But Shadow Mountain football players aren't feeling sorry for themselves. Richard Obert, The Arizona Republic, 19 Aug. 2022 Also daunting though, to recognize the challenges that this disruptive sorry to use the word economy is is presenting us. Fortune Editors, Fortune, 17 Aug. 2022 And look at the sorry state of our roads—someone graffitied the asphalt with white lines! Evan Waite, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2022 The ensuing four acts are then structured around Chromatica itself, interspersed with songs from The Fame, The Fame Monster and Born This Way mostly (sorry to the Artpop or Joanne devotees: cuts from those albums were left off the setlist entirely). Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 12 Aug. 2022 For his part, Vance Barlow is sorry to see Allred go. Mark Eddington, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 Aug. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English sory, from Old English sārig, from sār sore
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of sorry was before the 12th century