Abysmal vs Pathetic - What's the difference?
abysmal | pathetic |
(now, rare) Pertaining to, or resembling an abyss; unending; profound; fathomless; immeasurable.
* Carlyle
(figurative, colloquial) Bottomless; extremely bad.
* {{quote-news, year=2012
, date=June 9
, author=Owen Phillips
, title=Euro 2012: Netherlands 0-1 Denmark
, work=BBC Sport
Arousing pity, sympathy, or compassion.
Arousing scornful pity or contempt, often due to miserable inadequacy.
* {{quote-video, year=2005, title=
, passage=Well you'd better think of something because middle-aged tramps aren't cute, they're pathetic .}}
(obsolete) Expressing or showing anger; passionate.
As adjectives the difference between abysmal and pathetic
is that abysmal is pertaining to, or resembling an abyss; unending; profound; fathomless; immeasurable while pathetic is arousing pity, sympathy, or compassion.abysmal
English
Adjective
(en adjective)- Geology gives one the same abysmal extent of time that astronomy does of space.
citation, page= , passage=Robben curled an effort against the foot of the post from the edge of the box after being gifted the ball by an abysmal clearance from keeper Stephan Andersen.}}
Usage notes
* Nouns to which "abysmal" is often applied: ignorance, record, performance, poverty, conditions, quality, perplexity, result, and failure.References
External links
* *pathetic
English
Alternative forms
* pathetick (archaic) * patheticke (obsolete) * pathetique (obsolete)Adjective
(en adjective)- The old man’s pathetic pleas for forgiveness stirred the young man’s heart.
- You can't even run two miles? That’s pathetic .
- You're almost 26 years old and you still can't hold a real job? That's pathetic .
