deplorable
Americanadjective
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causing or being a subject for grief or regret; lamentable.
the deplorable death of a friend.
-
causing or being a subject for censure, reproach, or disapproval; wretched; very bad.
This room is in deplorable order. You have deplorable manners!
adjective
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lamentable
a deplorable lack of taste
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worthy of censure or reproach; very bad
deplorable behaviour
Other Word Forms
- deplorability noun
- deplorableness noun
- deplorably adverb
Etymology
Origin of deplorable
1605–15; < French déplorable < Middle French, equivalent to deplor ( er ) ( deplore ) + -able -able
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"They left me there all night, with damp walls, toilets in a deplorable state with hundreds of cockroaches and fecal matter that has built up over months," Castro recounted.
From Barron's • Feb. 6, 2026
Regrettable and deplorable as Gen. Tomer-Yerushalmi’s misconduct may be, it is unclear why the lesson of this affair should be the undermining of Israel’s legal system.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 1, 2025
"The bears were kept in deplorable conditions and we were desperate to set them free," said Mr Knight.
From BBC • Oct. 22, 2025
MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow called Leavitt’s Fox comments “a deplorable moment,” highlighting how senior officials’ words can quickly dominate headlines and social media.
From Salon • Oct. 19, 2025
Eavesdropping is a deplorable habit, but I have developed worse ones since. “... much about them,” I heard Ben say.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.