Commiserate
/kəˈmɪzəˌreɪt/
verbC1
Definition
Commiserate means to feel or show that you understand and are sorry about someone’s problems or sadness. It is often used when people share their feelings about something bad that happened, helping each other feel less alone.
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⚡ See It in Action
To express sympathy or sorrow together
- •She called her friend to commiserate after the exam results were bad.
- •They commiserated over the loss of their favorite team.
- •After the accident, neighbors gathered to commiserate with the family.
To share feelings of disappointment or sadness
- •We commiserated about the long wait at the airport.
- •The group commiserated on the difficult project they all failed.
🧲 Make It Stick
- ✓Think of "commiserate" like "feel sorry" or "share sadness," but more active and personal—you do it together with someone else.
- ✓Picture two friends sitting together, one telling about a bad day, and the other nodding and saying, "I understand, I feel the same."
- ✓It’s the feeling when you say “I’m sorry this happened” and really mean it, showing you care.
- ✓Sounds like "come-miss-rate" → imagine someone coming close to miss (fail) but you come to share their sadness.
- ✓Think of stories where people comfort each other after a loss or failure, showing they are not alone.
- ✓NOT like "ignore" (no care), "commiserate" means to connect through shared feelings.
- ✓NOT like "celebrate" (happy together), "commiserate" is about sadness or disappointment.
- ✓NOT like "sympathize" (feel sorry from a distance), "commiserate" means to actively share feelings with someone.
🔄 Try Other Words
- •Sympathize: to feel or show understanding of someone’s feelings (Use when you want to show care but might not share the feeling deeply)
- •Console: to comfort someone who is sad (Use when you want to help someone feel better, not just share feelings)
- •Comfort: to make someone feel less sad or worried (Use when you actively help someone feel better after bad news)
🔍 Unboxing
- •Word parts: "com-" (together) + "miserari" (Latin for to pity or feel sorry) + "-ate" (verb ending)
- •Etymology: From Latin "commiserari," meaning to pity together or feel sorrow with another
- •Historical development: Used in English since the 1600s to mean sharing sorrow or pity
- •Modern usage: Used to describe people expressing shared sadness or sympathy in personal or formal situations
💭 Reflect & Connect
•When have you felt the need to commiserate with someone? How did it help both of you?
•Can commiserating with others sometimes make a sad situation feel better? Why or why not?
Fill in the blanks with the correct word:
1.After hearing about her loss, I wanted to commiserate ___ her because I knew how hard it was.
2.They commiserated ___ the bad news, sharing stories of similar experiences.
3.Unlike celebrating success, to commiserate means to share ___ feelings.
4.Friends often commiserate ___ difficult times to feel less alone.
5.You can commiserate ___ someone without trying to fix the problem, just by listening.
6.When people commiserate, they usually express ___ or sadness together.
7.It is different to commiserate and to criticize; commiserate shows ___, not blame.