adj.1 arousing pity or sadness or contempt.
2 Brit. colloq. miserably inadequate.
3 archaic of the emotions.
Phrases and idioms:
pathetic fallacy the attribution of human feelings and responses to inanimate things, esp. in art and literature.
Derivatives:
pathetically adv.
Etymology: F path{eacute}tique f. LL patheticus f. Gk pathetikos (as PATHOS)