regret

[ri-gret] /rɪˈgrɛt/

verb (used with object), regretted, regretting.

to feel sorrow or remorse for (an act, fault, disappointment, etc.):

He no sooner spoke than he regretted it.

to think of with a sense of loss:

to regret one's vanished youth.

noun

a sense of loss, disappointment, dissatisfaction, etc.

a feeling of sorrow or remorse for a fault, act, loss, disappointment, etc.

regrets, a polite, usually formal refusal of an invitation:

I sent her my regrets.

a note expressing regret at one's inability to accept an invitation:

I have had four acceptances and one regret.

Origin

1300-50; Middle English regretten (v.) < Middle French regreter, Old French, equivalent to re- re- + -greter, perhaps < Germanic (cf. greet²)

Related forms

regretter, noun

regrettingly, adverb

unregretted, adjective

unregretting, adjective

Can be confused

begrudge, regret, resent (see synonym study at the current entry)

Synonyms

1. deplore, lament, bewail, bemoan, mourn, sorrow, grieve. Regret, penitence, remorse imply a sense of sorrow about events in the past, usually wrongs committed or errors made. Regret is distress of mind, sorrow for what has been done or failed to be done: to have no regrets. Penitence implies a sense of sin or misdoing, a feeling of contrition and determination not to sin again: a humble sense of penitence. Remorse implies pangs, qualms of conscience, a sense of guilt, regret, and repentance for sins committed, wrongs done, or duty not performed: a deep sense of remorse.

Antonyms

1. rejoice. 4. joy.

Examples from the web for regret

It suggests satisfaction, rather than regret or loss or sorrow.
Far outweighing the prospects of beer and familiar terrain, however, was a keen feeling of regret.
If you can afford this jacket, buy it, you won't regret it.
Only regret is they don't come in sage or other colors.
There will be no afterlife to regret any aspect of my life.
There is no tone deep enough for regret, and no voice loud enough for warning.
Such was his later regret about his student indifference.
Inform them it is only with deep regret that you must accept another position elsewhere.
But in his expressions of regret, he should have been more specific about what he thinks he should have done.
What is sad is that those dreams have not faded, but they now talk about them with regret instead of hopefulness.

British Dictionary definitions for regret

regret

/rɪˈɡrɛt/

verb (transitive) -grets, -gretting, -gretted

(may take a clause as object or an infinitive) to feel sorry, repentant, or upset about

to bemoan or grieve the death or loss of

noun

a sense of repentance, guilt, or sorrow, as over some wrong done or an unfulfilled ambition

a sense of loss or grief

(pl) a polite expression of sadness, esp in a formal refusal of an invitation

Derived Forms

regretful, adjective
regretfully, adverb
regretfulness, noun
regrettable, adjective
regrettably, adverb
regretter, noun

Usage note

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

Word Origin

C14: from Old French regrete, of Scandinavian origin; compare Old Norse grāta to weep

Word Origin and History for regret

"to look back with distress or sorrowful longing; to grieve for on remembering," late 14c., from Old French regreter "long after, bewail, lament someone's death; ask the help of" (Modern French regretter), from re-, intensive prefix (see re-), + -greter, possibly from Frankish or some other Germanic source (cf. Old English grætan "to weep;" Old Norse grata "to weep, groan"), from Proto-Germanic *gretan "weep." "Not found in other Romance languages, and variously explained" [Century Dictionary].

Related: Regretted; regretting. Replaced Old English ofþyncan, from of- "off, away," here denoting opposition, + þyncan "seem, seem fit" (as in methinks).

"pain or distress in the mind at something done or left undone," 1530s, from the verb, or from Middle French regret, back-formation from regreter (see regret (v.)).