( BrE also sym·pa·thise ) / ˈsɪmpəθaɪz; NAmE / verb
1.
sympathize (with sb/sth) to feel sorry for sb; to show that you understand and feel sorry about sb's problems :
[ v ]
I find it very hard to sympathize with him.
[also v speech ]
2.
[ v ] sympathize with sb/sth to support sb/sth :
He has never really sympathized with the aims of Animal Rights activists.
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WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent. (in the sense suffer with another person ): from French sympathiser , from sympathie sympathy, friendly understanding via Latin from Greek sumpatheia , from sumpathēs , from sun- with + pathos feeling.