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regret

   Also found in: Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.02 sec.
re·gret  (r-grt)
v. re·gret·ted, re·gret·ting, re·grets
v.tr.
1. To feel sorry, disappointed, or distressed about.
2. To remember with a feeling of loss or sorrow; mourn.
v.intr.
To feel regret.
n.
1. A sense of loss and longing for someone or something gone.
2. A feeling of disappointment or distress about something that one wishes could be different.
3. regrets A courteous expression of regret, especially at having to decline an invitation.

[Middle English regretten, to lament, from Old French regreter : re-, re- + -greter, to weep (perhaps of Germanic origin).]

re·gretter n.
Synonyms: regret, sorrow, grief, anguish, woe, heartache, heartbreak
These nouns denote mental distress. Regret has the broadest range, from mere disappointment to a painful sense of dissatisfaction or self-reproach, as over something lost or done: She looked back with regret on the pain she had caused her family.
Sorrow connotes sadness caused by misfortune, affliction, or loss; it can also imply contrition: "sorrow for his ... children, who needed his protection, and whom he could not protect" James Baldwin.
Grief is deep, acute personal sorrow, as that arising from irreplaceable loss: "Grief fills the room up of my absent child,/Lies in his bed, walks up and down with me" Shakespeare.
Anguish implies agonizing, excruciating mental pain: "I pray that our heavenly Father may assuage the anguish of your bereavement" Abraham Lincoln.
Woe is intense, often prolonged wretchedness or misery: "the deep, unutterable woe/Which none save exiles feel" W.E. Aytoun.
Heartache most often applies to sustained private sorrow: The child's difficulties are a source of heartache to the parents.
Heartbreak is overwhelming grief: "Better a little chiding than a great deal of heartbreak" Shakespeare.

regret
Verb
[-gretting, -gretted]
1. to feel sorry or upset about
2. to express apology or distress: we regret any misunderstanding caused
Noun
1. a feeling of repentance, guilt, or sorrow
2. regrets a polite expression of refusal: she had sent her regrets [Old French regreter]
regretful adj
regretfully adv
regrettable adj
regrettably adv
USAGE: Regretful and regretfully are sometimes wrongly used where regrettable and regrettably are meant: he gave a regretful smile; he smiled regretfully; this is a regrettable (not regretful) mistake; regrettably (not regretfully), I shall be unable to attend.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.regretregret - sadness associated with some wrong done or some disappointment; "he drank to drown his sorrows"; "he wrote a note expressing his regret"; "to his rue, the error cost him the game"
sadness, unhappiness - emotions experienced when not in a state of well-being
contriteness, contrition, attrition - sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation
compunction, remorse, self-reproach - a feeling of deep regret (usually for some misdeed)
Verb1.regret - feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about
feel, experience - undergo an emotional sensation or be in a particular state of mind; "She felt resentful"; "He felt regret"
2.regret - feel sad about the loss or absence of
miss - feel or suffer from the lack of; "He misses his mother"
3.regret - decline formally or politely; "I regret I can't come to the party"
refuse, decline - show unwillingness towards; "he declined to join the group on a hike"
regret - express with regret; "I regret to say that you did not gain admission to Harvard"
4.regret - express with regret; "I regret to say that you did not gain admission to Harvard"
inform - impart knowledge of some fact, state or affairs, or event to; "I informed him of his rights"
regret - decline formally or politely; "I regret I can't come to the party"
fear - be sorry; used to introduce an unpleasant statement; "I fear I won't make it to your wedding party"

regret
verb 1. be or feel sorry about, feel remorse about, be upset about, rue, deplore, bemoan, repent (of), weep over, bewail, cry over spilt milk << OPPOSITE be satisfied with
verb 2. mourn, miss, grieve for or over
Translations
Spanish regret [rɪˈgrɛt] nsentimiento, pesar m (= remorse); remordimiento
vtsentir, lamentar (= repent of); arrepentirse de;
we regret to inform you that ... → sentimos informarle que ...

French regret [rɪˈgrɛt] nregret m
vtregretter;
to regret that → regretter que + sub;
we regret to inform you that ... → nous sommes au regret de vous informer que ...

German regret [rɪˈgrɛt] nBedauern nt
vtbedauern;
with regret → mit Bedauern;
to have no regrets → nichts bereuen;
we regret to inform you that ... → wir müssen Ihnen leider mitteilen, dass ...

Italian regret [rɪˈgrɛt] nrimpianto, rincrescimento
vtrimpiangere;
I regret that I/he cannot help → mi rincresce di non poter aiutare/che lui non possa aiutare;
we regret to inform you that ... → siamo spiacenti di informarla che ...

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I am not only persuaded of Herncastle's guilt; I am even fanciful enough to believe that he will live to regret it, if he keeps the Diamond; and that others will live to regret taking it from him, if he gives the Diamond away.
Love and regret go hand in hand in this world of changes swifter than the shifting of the clouds reflected in the mirror of the sea.
It was like a long debauch, from which I emerged with regret that it should ever end.
 
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