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Sympathy

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Sympathy
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sym⋅pa⋅thy

  [sim-puh-thee] noun, plural -thies, adjective
Use Sympathy in a Sentence
–noun
1. harmony of or agreement in feeling, as between persons or on the part of one person with respect to another.
2. the harmony of feeling naturally existing between persons of like tastes or opinion or of congenial dispositions.
3. the fact or power of sharing the feelings of another, esp. in sorrow or trouble; fellow feeling, compassion, or commiseration.
4. sympathies,
a. feelings or impulses of compassion.
b. feelings of favor, support, or loyalty: It's hard to tell where your sympathies lie.
5. favorable or approving accord; favor or approval: He viewed the plan with sympathy and publicly backed it.
6. agreement, consonance, or accord.
7. Psychology. a relationship between persons in which the condition of one induces a parallel or reciprocal condition in another.
8. Physiology. the relation between parts or organs whereby a condition or disorder of one part induces some effect in another.
–adjective
9. expressing sympathy: a sympathy card; a sympathy vote.
Origin:
1560–70; < L sympathīa < Gk sympátheia, equiv. to sympathe-, s. of sympaths sympathetic (sym- sym- + páth(os) suffering, sensation + -ēs adj. suffix) + -ia -y 3

Synonyms:
1. concord, understanding, rapport, affinity.Sympathy, compassion, pity, empathy all denote the tendency, practice, or capacity to share in the feelings of others, especially their distress, sorrow, or unfulfilled desires. Sympathy is the broadest of these terms, signifying a general kinship with another's feelings, no matter of what kind: in sympathy with her yearning for peace and freedom; to extend sympathy to the bereaved. Compassion implies a deep sympathy for the sorrows or troubles of another coupled to a powerful urge to alleviate the pain or distress or to remove its source: to show compassion for homeless refugees. Pity usually suggests a kindly, but sometimes condescending, sorrow aroused by the suffering or ill fortune of others, often leading to a show of mercy: tears of pity for war casualties; to have pity on a thief driven by hunger. Empathy most often refers to a vicarious participation in the emotions, ideas, or opinions of others, the ability to imagine oneself in the condition or predicament of another: empathy with those striving to improve their lives; to feel empathy with Hamlet as one watches the play.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Sympathy
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sym·pa·thy   (sĭm'pə-thē)   
n.   pl. sym·pa·thies

    1. A relationship or an affinity between people or things in which whatever affects one correspondingly affects the other.

    2. Mutual understanding or affection arising from this relationship or affinity.

    3. The act or power of sharing the feelings of another.

    4. A feeling or an expression of pity or sorrow for the distress of another; compassion or commiseration. Often used in the plural. See Synonyms at pity.

    1. The act or power of sharing the feelings of another.

    2. A feeling or an expression of pity or sorrow for the distress of another; compassion or commiseration. Often used in the plural. See Synonyms at pity.

  3. Harmonious agreement; accord: He is in sympathy with their beliefs.

  4. A feeling of loyalty; allegiance. Often used in the plural: His sympathies lie with his family.

  5. Physiology A relation between parts or organs by which a disease or disorder in one induces an effect in the other.


[Latin sympathīa, from Greek sumpatheia, from sumpathēs, affected by like feelings : sun-, syn- + pathos, emotion; see kwent(h)- in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

sympathy 
1579, "affinity between certain things," from M.Fr. sympathie, from L.L. sympathia "community of feeling, sympathy," from Gk. sympatheia, from sympathes "having a fellow feeling, affected by like feelings," from syn- "together" + pathos "feeling" (see pathos). In Eng., almost a magical notion at first; e.g. in ref. to medicines that heal wounds when applied to a cloth stained with blood from the wound. Meaning "conformity of feelings" is from 1596; sense of "fellow feeling" is first attested 1662. Sympathize "to have fellow-feeling" is recorded from 1605. Sympathetic "sharing the feelings of another" is from 1718. In anatomical sense, the word is attested from 1769, from Mod.L. (nervus) sympathicus, coined by Jacques-Benigne Winslow (1669-1760), Danish anatomist living in Paris.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: sym·pa·thy
Pronunciation: 'sim-p&-thE
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -thies
1 a : anaffinity, association, or relationship between persons or things wherein whatever affects one similarly affects the other b : mutual or parallel susceptibility or a condition broughtabout by it
2 a : the act or capacity of entering into or sharing the feelings or interests of another b : the feeling or mental state brought about by suchsensitivity
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Medical Dictionary

sympathy sym·pa·thy (sĭm'pə-thē)
n.

  1. A relation between parts or organs by which a disease or disorder in one induces an effect in the other.

  2. Mental contagion, as in yawning induced by seeing another person yawn.

  3. Mutual understanding or affection arising from a relationship or an affinity, in which whatever affects one correspondingly affects the other.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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