1
as in heartbroken
expressing or suggesting mourning
gave me a regretful look when I told him we had to move my mother to a nursing home
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sorry
feeling sorrow for a wrong that one has done
was truly regretful that she had yelled at him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of regretful
The story line is primarily a way to explore Annie’s insecurities, with Hughie made to feel guilty and regretful about his dalliance with the doppelgänger instead of ever getting to process his own reaction to the revelation.
—
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Neither damning nor satiric, W. is oddly wistful, almost regretful — rare sentiments in a Stone film.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 17 Feb. 2025
Reubens is candid and perhaps regretful about some of his controlling behavior on the show, and its eventual demise; ditto some of the choices made on Big Top Pee-Wee.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Her scenes with Burstein are rich and funny and regretful; those with June (Jordan Tyson) and Louise (Joy Woods) are withering.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretful
Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
Neither damning nor satiric, W. is oddly wistful, almost regretful — rare sentiments in a Stone film.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 17 Feb. 2025
Reubens is candid and perhaps regretful about some of his controlling behavior on the show, and its eventual demise; ditto some of the choices made on Big Top Pee-Wee.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Her scenes with Burstein are rich and funny and regretful; those with June (Jordan Tyson) and Louise (Joy Woods) are withering.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for regretful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for regretful
Adjective
-
In the original visual, the Grammy winner plays a heartbroken character named Peaches who has all traces of her ex wiped from her hippocampus, an homage to Michel Gondry’s 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
26 Mar. 2025
-
Seven Oaks parents ‘heartbroken’ Five Seven Oaks parents reached out to the Statesman to express disappointment with the removal of the bulletin board.—
Rose Evans,
Idaho Statesman,
25 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Brienne—sorry, Lorne—and Mr. Drummond (RIP) and the sacrificial baby goat!—
Eliana Dockterman,
TIME,
21 Mar. 2025
-
So now that the price is slashed in half, this is really a deal that can't be beat (sorry).—
John Mihaly,
PCMAG,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The mournful footnote to Hollywood or Bust is that off-set, the friendship between Martin and Lewis had already broken down irrevocably.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
TIME,
19 Mar. 2025
-
Definitely — but there’s a mournful resonance to that in a play where characters reach out so desperately and remain so trapped within themselves.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Trump and Vice President JD Vance should be ashamed.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
18 Mar. 2025
-
And both Team Johnson and complicit aldermen should be ashamed this ham-handed gambit was kept under wraps when those affected could have had a say. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
-
Whetstone said the power was with the poster and encouraged her mother to be remorseful, express mortification with her actions and work to make amends.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
31 Jan. 2025
-
The victim's mother told the Daily Mail the teen does not appear to be remorseful.—
Christina Coulter,
Fox News,
17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
For the certification, Senate pages carried the Electoral College ballot boxes through the rotunda like caskets in a funeral procession.—
Antonia Hitchens,
The New Yorker,
21 Jan. 2025
-
Now the family is grappling with funeral arrangements for the young woman.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
2 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Smith has since resigned from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and has been apologetic to Rock for slapping him onstage following a G.I. Jane joke about Pinkett-Smith.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
25 Mar. 2025
-
Stewart is chatty and candid in retelling the story, if not especially apologetic.—
Wendy Grossman Kantor,
People.com,
21 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Regretful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/regretful. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share