rueful

UK:**UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈruːfʊl/US:USA pronunciation: IPA and respellingUSA pronunciation: IPA/ˈrufəl/ ,USA pronunciation: respelling(ro̅o̅′fəl)


WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
rue•ful /ˈrufəl/USA pronunciation   adj. 
    1. feeling or expressing sorrow or pity:The loser had a rueful look on his face.
    2. causing sorrow or pity:a rueful plight of starvation.
    rue•ful•ly, adv.: smiled ruefully as he said good-bye.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
rue•ful  (ro̅o̅′fəl),USA pronunciation adj. 
  1. causing sorrow or pity;
    pitiable;
    deplorable:a rueful plight.
  2. feeling, showing, or expressing sorrow or pity;
    mournful;
    doleful:the rueful look on her face.
  • Middle English reowful. See rue1, -ful 1175–1225
rue′ful•ly, adv. 
rue′ful•ness, n. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
rueful /ˈruːfʊl/ adj
  1. feeling or expressing sorrow or repentance: a rueful face
  2. inspiring sorrow or pity
ˈruefully adv ˈruefulness n
'rueful' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
contrite - half-rueful - penitent

🗣️Forum discussions with the word(s) "rueful" in the title:


Look up "rueful" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "rueful" at dictionary.com
  • Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

In other languages: Spanish | French | Italian | Portuguese | Romanian | German | Dutch | Swedish | Russian | Polish | Czech | Greek | Turkish | Chinese | Japanese | Korean | Arabic

Advertisements
Advertisements
Report an inappropriate ad.
WordReference.com
WORD OF THE DAY
GET THE DAILY EMAIL!

Become a WordReference Supporter to view the site ad-free.