regrettable

regrettable
regretful, regrettable
Regretful means ‘feeling regret’ and applies to a person, whereas regrettable means ‘causing regret’ and applies to an action:

• He did not crave recognition, but was understandably regretful about his lack of it —E. Cashmore, 1982

• Now let us come to the point: are you willing to overlook this —this regrettable incident and try again? —M. Forster, 1990.

The corresponding adverb regretfully (= in a regretful way) is commonly misused for regrettably (= as is to be regretted), especially as a sentence adverb:

• ☒ Regretfully, the car parking problem at the Church Street end of tullow seems to have been forgotten —Carlow Nationalist, 2001 [OEC].


Modern English usage. 2014.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • regrettable — [ r(ə)gretabl ] adj. • regretable 1478; de regretter 1 ♦ Vx Digne d être regretté (I). Une personne « peu regrettable » (Hugo). 2 ♦ (1870) Mod. Qui est à regretter (II, 2o). ⇒ fâcheux. REM. Regrettable est un euphémisme pour exprimer le… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • regrettable — Regrettable. adj. de tout genre. Digne d estre regreté. Cet homme là estoit utile à son païs, il est fort regrettable. ce n est pas une là chose regrettable …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • regrettable — I adjective adverse, calamitous, catastrophic, deplorable, dire, disadvantageous, disastrous, dreadful, grievous, ill boding, ill fated, ill omened, inauspicious, inopportune, lamentable, paenitendus, regretted, ruinous, sad, scandalous, terrible …   Law dictionary

  • regrettable — c.1600, “deserving of regret,” from REGRET (Cf. regret) + ABLE (Cf. able). Related: Regrettably …   Etymology dictionary

  • regrettable — [adj] unfortunate, wrong afflictive, calamitous, deplorable, dire, disappointing, distressing, dreadful, grievous, heartbreaking, ill advised, lamentable, pitiable, pitiful, sad, shameful, unfavorable, unhappy, woeful; concepts 548,571 Ant.… …   New thesaurus

  • regrettable — ► ADJECTIVE ▪ giving rise to regret; undesirable. DERIVATIVES regrettably adverb …   English terms dictionary

  • regrettable — [ri gret′ə bəl] adj. to be regretted; unfortunate regrettably adv …   English World dictionary

  • REGRETTABLE — adj. des deux genres Qui mérite d être regretté. Une personne regrettable, très regrettable. Un bien regrettable, peu regrettable …   Dictionnaire de l'Academie Francaise, 7eme edition (1835)

  • REGRETTABLE — adj. des deux genres Qui mérite d’être regretté. Avantage regrettable. Un emploi peu regrettable. Il ne se dit guère que des Choses. Il signifie aussi Qui appelle des regrets, qui est fâcheux. Un incident regrettable. Un discours regrettable …   Dictionnaire de l'Academie Francaise, 8eme edition (1935)

  • regrettable — adj. VERBS ▪ be, seem ADVERB ▪ deeply, extremely, highly, truly, very ▪ a deeply re …   Collocations dictionary

  • regrettable — re|gret|ta|ble [rıˈgretəbəl] adj something that is regrettable is unpleasant, and you wish things could be different = ↑unfortunate ▪ This was a very regrettable error. it is regrettable that ▪ It s regrettable that classical music receives so… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

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