I. |simpə|thed.]ik, -et], ]ēk\ adjective
Etymology: New Latin sympatheticus, from Greek sympatheia sympathy + -ētikos (as in pathētikos pathetic)
1. : existing or operating through a real or assumed affinity, interdependence, or mutual association in which the condition of one thing influences sometimes in an occult way that of a separate unrelated thing
cut hair and nails are supposed by primitive man to remain in a sympathetic relation with their original owner — J.G.Frazer
the sympathetic exhilaration of so many people's cheerfulness — Nathaniel Hawthorne
2.
a. : of such nature or character that coexistence, accord, or association is feasible or satisfying : not discordant or antagonistic
antipathetic to the law of community living, but sympathetic to the law of survival — Agnes N. Keith
sympathetic to slum-clearance programs
b. : appropriate to one's mood, inclinations, or disposition : having qualities leading to kindly acceptance, gratification, appreciation, or pleasurable association
meekness was not a quality that she found sympathetic — Helen Howe
found a sympathetic medium in wood engraving — Herbert Read
c. : marked by kindly or pleased appreciation
in general the treatment of the subject is sympathetic rather than hostile — W.L.Sperry
3. : given to, marked by, or arising from sympathy, compassion, friendly fellow feelings, and sensitivity to others' emotions
when you are cold and critical, instead of sympathetic — Nathaniel Hawthorne
a sympathetic gesture
4. : favorably inclined : showing attitudes or preferences in harmony : approving, favoring
those more sympathetic to your ways or views — M.R.Cohen
not sympathetic to the idea of a sales tax
5. : showing empathy : exhibiting ready comprehension of others' mental states : led by disposition or intuition to a warm friendly appreciative interest in others
though some considered her arrogant and forbidding, I found her personality sympathetic — Edmund Wilson
6.
a. : of or relating to the sympathetic nervous system
b. : mediated by or acting on the sympathetic nerves
7. : relating to musical tones produced by means of sympathetic vibration (as from a resonator or resonance cavity)
sympathetic tones
or so tuned as to sound by sympathetic vibration rather than by being struck, plucked, or bowed
sympathetic string
Synonyms: see consonant , tender
II. noun
( -s )
: a sympathetic structure ; especially : sympathetic nervous system