1
as in mournful
expressing or suggesting mourning
the rueful faces of friends and family who had gathered to pay their last respects
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sorry
feeling sorrow for a wrong that one has done
a rueful youth who had come to ask for forgiveness for online bullying
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in pitiful
deserving of one's pity
the rueful, desperate poverty of people in parts of the Third World
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of rueful
But most of my friends grimace and then, after a rueful joke, move on to other topics.
—
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024
The book also has a complicated, somewhat rueful take on race.
—Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
Arrogantly rueful, Hartnett’s vicious killer has a flair for the dramatic, revealing, in the film’s final throes, to lead a semi-charmed kinda life.
—Nicholas Bell, SPIN, 4 Sep. 2024
Bank’s wry, matter-of-fact tone makes the stories’ many rueful asides, exquisitely funny similes and snappy one-liners all the more effective.
—Katherine A. Powers, Washington Post, 22 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for rueful 
Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024
The book also has a complicated, somewhat rueful take on race.
—Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
Arrogantly rueful, Hartnett’s vicious killer has a flair for the dramatic, revealing, in the film’s final throes, to lead a semi-charmed kinda life.
—Nicholas Bell, SPIN, 4 Sep. 2024
Bank’s wry, matter-of-fact tone makes the stories’ many rueful asides, exquisitely funny similes and snappy one-liners all the more effective.
—Katherine A. Powers, Washington Post, 22 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for rueful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rueful
Adjective
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So, why not head next door — in a friendly way, not a mournful one — and express your natural curiosity?—
Philip Galanes,
New York Times,
1 Jan. 2025
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Her observations as a woman once romantically involved with the two of them at the same time, confirm their masculine inability to speak their feelings out loud unless they are veiled in mournful songs.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Variety,
28 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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There’s no room for feeling sorry for ourselves in the NBA, in life in general.—
Anthony Slater,
The Athletic,
8 Jan. 2025
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The teen’s attorney, Bob Dunlap, said at the time his client was sorry for what occurred.—
Ryan Gaydos,
Fox News,
7 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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This isn’t to say Orlok isn’t evil, but that his evilness does not exclude him from being pitiful.—
Alex Abad-Santos,
Vox,
10 Jan. 2025
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Perhaps this weekend can be a get-right game against the pitiful New York Jets, but there’s not much to be excited about.—
Fox News Staff,
Fox News,
13 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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Yet none of the people who had new hates felt remotely ashamed.—
Sheila Heti,
The New Yorker,
19 Jan. 2025
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With your silly smirks your mothers would be ashamed of?—
Marya E. Gates,
IndieWire,
13 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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In the final, pathetic weeks of his failed presidency, Joe Biden has been casting about desperately for a positive legacy.—
Jack Butler,
National Review,
12 Jan. 2025
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The 10th pick will be your usual pathetic Bear player.—
Jon Greenberg,
The Athletic,
5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Probably train tomorrow for my sanity, but just frustrated and heartbroken.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
12 Jan. 2025
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Her owner recently passed away unexpectedly, and Eartha was left heartbroken.—
Maryanne Dell,
Orange County Register,
11 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Meanwhile, the fans wearing Aaron Judge and Mariano Rivera jerseys who tried to pry the ball from Betts’ glove weren’t exactly remorseful.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Dec. 2024
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Hughie Campbell is walking with his girlfriend down the street when suddenly she's obliterated by a speeding A-Train, who doesn't really seem that remorseful.—
Gord Magill,
Newsweek,
22 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near rueful
Cite this Entry
“Rueful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rueful. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
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