Compassion
noun /kəmˈpæʃən/ — Sympathetic concern for others' suffering — with the desire to help.
Definition
Sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others; the desire to alleviate another's suffering.
Beyond the definition
Compassion is empathy with a direction — it moves toward the other's suffering rather than stopping at feeling it. The compassionate person is not just aware of pain but drawn to do something about it. It is the active form of sympathy.
Origin & history
From Latin compassio — suffering together (com: together + pati: to suffer). Suffering together — compassion as the joining of your experience to another's pain.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
She received the news with compassion — not pity, which keeps distance, but the genuine joining with the difficulty.
Compassion fatigue: the exhaustion that comes from sustained exposure to others' suffering.
The difference between pity and compassion: pity looks down; compassion stands beside.
How to use it
This entry uses a noun. Follow the examples for articles and singular or plural forms; not every noun takes “a” or “an.”
Choose “Compassion” when the meaning fits your context: Sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others; the desire to alleviate another's suffering.
Synonyms
Antonyms
indifference, cruelty, callousness
Related words
Compassion vs empathy
Empathy is feeling what another feels. Compassion is empathy combined with an active, burning desire to help or alleviate that person's suffering.
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Quiet Empathy During Performance
An audience member sits with relaxed hands, watching a performance, their expression suggesting a deep, quiet resonance with the unfolding human story.
This image represents compassion by illustrating a moment of shared emotional connection in a theater. The observer’s open posture and tearful expression suggest they are feeling with the subject of the play, highlighting the empathetic desire to understand and connect with another's experience.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated conceptual illustration
Questions about this word
What does "Compassion" mean?
Compassion is noun meaning: Sympathetic concern for others' suffering — with the desire to help.. Sympathetic pity and concern for the sufferings or misfortunes of others; the desire to alleviate another's suffering.
Where does the word "Compassion" come from?
From Latin compassio — suffering together (com: together + pati: to suffer). Suffering together — compassion as the joining of your experience to another's pain.