ˈrechə̇d adjective
( usually -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English wrecched, from wrecche wretch + -ed
1. : deeply afflicted, dejected, or distressed from want, disease, or mental anguish : extremely unhappy or unfortunate
the wretched wife of the innocent man thus doomed to die — Charles Dickens
the most wretched of all the sufferers from medieval lack of cleanliness — Edwin Benson
2.
a. : characterized by or tending to produce misery : squalid , dismal , foul
living conditions are wretched because the soil is so poor and dry — Juan Comas
wretched houses along the tracks … so old that some of them had earthen floors — Morley Callaghan
b. : producing or being marked by discomfort or distress
spend a wretched night on the floor — Archie Binns
a wretched journey by stage — Elinor Wylie
wretched health
3. : having a mean or contemptible nature or appearance: as
a. : base , vile
b. : meager , paltry , insufficient
his wretched store of a few dried beans — Pearl Buck
c. : marked by mistreatment, undernourishment, or overuse : shabby , outworn , gaunt
the scrawniest, wretchedest horse I had ever seen — Peter Kalischer
a wretched purple and black costume that was frayed and stained — Barnaby Conrad
the most wretched set of animals that he could buy … mangy lions and panthers and sick bears — Robert Graves
d. : exhibiting very poor quality or ability : inexpert, crude, or scanting in execution
the latter poem being so wretched by the standard of the former — Robert Fitzgerald
the army's wretched supply system had blundered again — F.V.W.Mason
coinage of this period is noted for its wretched workmanship — J.F.Lhotka
Synonyms: see miserable