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Webster 1913 Edition

Pitiful

Pit′i-ful

,
Adj.
1.
Full of pity; tender-hearted; compassionate; kind; merciful; sympathetic.
The Lord is very
pitiful
, and of tender mercy.
James v. 11.
2.
Piteous; lamentable; eliciting compassion.
A thing, indeed, very
pitiful
and horrible.
Spenser.
3.
To be pitied for littleness or meanness; miserable; paltry; contemptible; despicable.
That’s villainous, and shows a most
pitiful
ambition in the fool that uses it.
Shakespeare
Syn. – Despicable; mean; paltry. See
Contemptible
.
–
Pit′i-ful-ly
,
adv.
–
Pit′i-ful-ness
,
Noun.

Webster 1828 Edition

Pitiful

PIT'IFUL

,
Adj.
[See Pity.] Full of pity; tender; compassionate; having a heart to feel sorrow and sympathy for the distressed. James 5. 1 Pet.3. [This is the proper sense of the word.]
1.
Miserable; moving compassion; as a sight most pitiful; a pitiful condition.
2.
To be pitied for its littleness or meanness; paltry; contemptible; despicable.
That's villainous, and shows a most pitiful ambition in the fool that uses it.
3.
Very small; insignificant.

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