regretful
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
- regretfully adverb
- regretfulness noun
- unregretful adjective
- unregretfully adverb
- unregretfulness noun
Etymology
Origin of regretful
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It’s an idiosyncratic decision, no doubt also affected by the galleries’ footprint, but a regretful one.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 17, 2026
The other night, I bumped into a fellow parent at an ice cream shop and when I asked how he was, he said, with a regretful smile, “depends on the day.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 9, 2025
I was, to be clear, an active if uneasy and now regretful participant in all of this.
From Slate • May 12, 2025
"I am truly sorry and regretful that I could not live up to your expectations," he said.
From BBC • Apr. 4, 2025
He did not seem surprised, only gravely regretful.
From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
