rue

¹

[ roo ]

verb (used with object)

, rued, ru·ing.

1. to feel sorrow over; repent of; regret bitterly:

   to rue the loss of opportunities.

2. to wish that (something) had never been done, taken place, etc.:

   I rue the day he was born.

verb (used without object)

, rued, ru·ing.

1. to feel sorrow, repentance, or regret.

noun

1. sorrow; repentance; regret.
2. pity or compassion.

rue

²

[ roo ]

noun

1. any strongly scented plant of the genus Ruta, especially R. graveolens, having yellow flowers and leaves formerly used in medicine.

rue

¹

/ ruː /

noun

1. any rutaceous plant of the genus Ruta , esp R. graveolens , an aromatic Eurasian shrub with small yellow flowers and evergreen leaves which yield an acrid volatile oil, formerly used medicinally as a narcotic and stimulant Archaic nameherb of grace Compare goat's-rue meadow rue wall rue

rue

²

/ ruː /

verb

1. to feel sorrow, remorse, or regret for (one's own wrongdoing, past events with unpleasant consequences, etc)

noun

1. archaic.
   sorrow, pity, or regret

Derived Forms

• ˈruer, noun

Other Words From

• ruer noun
• un·rued adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of rue¹

before 900; (v.) Middle English ruen, rewen, Old English hrēowan; cognate with Dutch rouwen, German reuen; (noun) Middle English rewe, reowe, Old English hrēow; cognate with Dutch rouw, German Reue; ruth

Origin of rue²

1350–1400; Middle English < Middle French < Latin rūta < Greek rhȳtḗ

Word History and Origins

Origin of rue¹

C14: from Old French, from Latin rūta , from Greek rhutē

Origin of rue²

Old English hrēowan ; related to Old Saxon hreuwan , Old High German hriuwan

Example Sentences

She was originally cast as man-hungry Blanche Devereaux with eventual portrayer Rue McClanahan set to play the sometimes-clueless Rose.

From Los Angeles Times

Season 5’s Jared “JP” Pierce didn’t make it past the engagement vacation with his pod match, Taylor Rue, after he voiced that her makeup turned him off: “It felt like you were fake.”

From Salon

Australia did not do too much wrong with the ball as Bosch did not even offer a chance, but they will rue their lack of ambition with the bat as they allowed South Africa to take one step closer to their first global title.

From BBC

Pakistan will rue the dropped catches - it was a pitiful display which saw bonus chances given to Bates, Kerr, Sophie Devine and Brooke Halliday.

From BBC

They were made to rue missed opportunities when leading in the second half but demonstrated why they are considered the side most likely to stop England lifting the World Cup at the Allianz Stadium on 27 September.

From BBC