wretched

wretch·ed/ˈɹɛt͡ʃəd/adjective

wretched is spelled W-R-E-T-C-H-E-D: 8 letters and 2 syllables (wretch·ed). It appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, wretched means “Characterized by or feeling deep affliction or distress; very miserable” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in wretched?

Letters	8: W-R-E-T-C-H-E-D
Syllables	2: wretch·ed
In writing	2.3 times per million words; the 17,813th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searched	none measured in search

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How common is wretched?

Wretched appears 2.3 times per million words in written English, the 17,813th most frequent word form in the list.

wretched0.0010.010.11101001,00010,000

rarerper million words of written Englishmore common

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce wretched?

UK /ˈɹɛt͡ʃɪd/
US /ˈɹɛt͡ʃəd/

Wretched has 2 syllables, split wretch·ed in writing.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-wretched.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

Forms of wretched

more wretched comparative
most wretched superlative

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does wretched mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

adjective

1
Characterized by or feeling deep affliction or distress; very miserable.
I felt wretched after my wife died.
2
Of an inferior or unworthy nature or social status; contemptible, lowly.
The street was full of wretched beggars dressed in rags.
3
Of an insignificant, mean, or poor nature; miserable, paltry, worthless.
I just lack the fine motor skill. Same reason I'm a grown man who doesn't know how to use a screwdriver without looking like a retard. Oh, I'm wretched.
4
Of a person, etc.: behaving in a manner causing contempt; base, despicable, wicked.
5
Of weather: causing much discomfort; very unpleasant; miserable.
6
informalUsed to express annoyance towards or dislike of someone or something: bloody, damned.
Will you please stop playing that wretched trombone!