Link Centre Dictionary

regret

reg·ret

UK/ɹɪˈɡɹɛt/ US/ɹəˈɡɹɛt/ common
verb (4) noun (1)

verb

1.

feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about

Synonyms
2.

feel sad about the loss or absence of

3.

decline formally or politely

  • “I regret I can”
4.

be sorry

  • “I regret to say that you did not gain admission to Harvard”

noun

1.

an explanation that results from interpreting something

  • “the report included his interpretation of the forensic evidence”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English regretten, regreten, from Old French regreter, regrater (“to lament”), from re- (intensive prefix) + *greter, *grater (“to weep”), from Frankish *grātan (“to weep, mourn, lament”), from Proto-Germanic *grētaną (“to weep”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵʰreh₁d- (“to sound”); and Frankish *greutan (“to cry, weep”), from Proto-Germanic *greutaną (“to weep, cry”), from Proto-Indo-European *gʰrewd- (“to weep, be sad”), equivalent to re- + greet.

Phrases

  • letter of regret
  • live to regret
  • postdecisional regret
  • regret letter
  • regret rape

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.