wretched

[ rech-id ]

adjective

, wretch·ed·er, wretch·ed·est.

1. very unfortunate in condition or circumstances; miserable; pitiable.

   Synonyms: unhappy, forlorn, woebegone, woeful, distressed, dejected

2. characterized by or attended with misery and sorrow.
3. despicable, contemptible, or mean:

   a wretched miser.

   Synonyms: vile, base

4. poor, sorry, or pitiful; worthless:

   a wretched job of sewing.

wretched

/ ˈrɛtʃɪd /

adjective

1. in poor or pitiful circumstances
2. characterized by or causing misery
3. despicable; base
4. poor, inferior, or paltry
5. prenominal (intensifier qualifying something undesirable)

   a wretched nuisance

Derived Forms

• ˈwretchedly, adverb
• ˈwretchedness, noun

Other Words From

• wretched·ly adverb
• wretched·ness noun
• un·wretched adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of wretched¹

First recorded in 1150–1200, wretched is from the Middle English word wrecchede. See wretch, -ed ³

Synonym Study

Wretched, miserable, sorry refer to that which is unhappy, afflicted, or distressed. Wretched refers to a condition of extreme affliction or distress, especially as outwardly apparent: wretched hovels. Miserable refers more to the inward feeling of unhappiness or distress: a miserable life. Sorry applies to distressed, often poverty-stricken outward circumstances; but it has connotations of unworthiness, incongruousness, or the like, so that the beholder feels more contempt than pity: in a sorry plight.

Example Sentences

After all, the Dutchman had presided over a wretched start to this Premier League campaign, despite the club spending more than half a billion pounds on signing players since Ten Hag's arrival two years ago.

From BBC

“What a wretched state the ruling party is in,” said Michiko Hamada, who had travelled to Urawa station, on outskirts of Tokyo, for an opposition campaign rally.

From BBC

Despite their wretched run, Pakistan look stronger on paper than they did then.

From BBC

While the ghost of Walter Cronkite was probably wretched in anticipation of the event, which studio heads boasted would feature no fact-checking from the moderators, early in the debate the journalists abandoned that vow after Vance refused to drop the obvious and dangerous lie about Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio he’s propagated for weeks.

From Salon

Bogaerts, the team’s $280-million signing two offseasons ago, might have had the biggest second-half turnaround, rebounding from a wretched first half — his OPS was under .600 through July 21 — by hitting .291 over his final 59 games.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• abject
• deplorable
• depressed
• despicable
• forlorn
• gloomy
• hopeless
• miserable
• pathetic
• pitiful
• tragic
• woeful