1
: exciting pity or sympathy : pitiable
rueful squalid poverty … by every wayside—
John Morley
John Morley
ruefulness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of rueful in a Sentence
He gave me a rueful smile and apologized.
the rueful faces of friends and family who had gathered to pay their last respects
Recent Examples on the Web
What’s a cocky teenage boy to an English teacher in middle life and his rueful wife?
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2024
Baker clearly respects and admires Ani, and looks with rueful empathy at the severe orders and fearsome threats under which the three tough guys labor, the harsh yet frivolous upbringing that has left Vanya a terrified emotional baby.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2024
But most of my friends grimace and then, after a rueful joke, move on to other topics.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024
The book also has a complicated, somewhat rueful take on race.
—Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rueful 
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Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 18 Oct. 2024
Baker clearly respects and admires Ani, and looks with rueful empathy at the severe orders and fearsome threats under which the three tough guys labor, the harsh yet frivolous upbringing that has left Vanya a terrified emotional baby.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2024
But most of my friends grimace and then, after a rueful joke, move on to other topics.
—Vinson Cunningham, The New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2024
The book also has a complicated, somewhat rueful take on race.
—Charles McGrath, The Atlantic, 8 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for rueful
Dictionary Entries Near rueful
Cite this Entry
“Rueful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rueful. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
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