pitiful
/ˈpɪt.ɪ.fl̩/adjective, adverb
pitiful is spelled P-I-T-I-F-U-L: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, pitiful means “So appalling or sad that one feels or should feel sorry for it; eliciting pity” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in pitiful?
| Letters | 7: P-I-T-I-F-U-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.7 times per million words; the 21,209th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is pitiful?
Pitiful appears 1.7 times per million words in written English, the 21,209th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce pitiful?
- /ˈpɪt.ɪ.fl̩/
Pitiful has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-pitiful.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of pitiful
- pitifuller comparative
- pitifullest superlative
- more pitiful comparative
- most pitiful superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does pitiful mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
So appalling or sad that one feels or should feel sorry for it; eliciting pity.
Scotland has a pitiful climate.
- 2
Eliciting contempt.
- 3
Of an amount or number: very small.
A pitiful number of students bothered to turn up.
- 4
archaicFeeling pity; merciful.
adverb
- 1
colloquialIn a pitiful manner; pitifully; piteously; pathetically.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Pitiful in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | pitoyable , dérisoire |
| German | erbärmlich, kläglich, jämmerlich, mitleiderregend, bemitleidenswert, bedauernswert |
| Portuguese | lamentável |
| Spanish | lastimoso, lastimero, penoso, lamentoso, achará, mísero |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does pitiful come from?
From Middle English pityful, piteful, piteeful. By surface analysis, pit(i) + -ful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).