Monday, August 15, 2016

apathetic, a pathetic

Apathetic or apathetic ( one word ) means not interested; completely indifferent, intellectually or emotionally --
Too many citizens are apathetic when asked about the upcoming election.
He's apathetic in general, and always says he's bored.

A pathetic or a pathetic ( two words ) means one ( a ) person or thing that arouses pity or that appeals to emotion in general ( pathetic ) --
The kitten gave a pathetic cry, and we found him hiding under the car.
The lawyer made a pathetic appeal to the jury, and nearly persuaded them to acquit his client.

Now that you know that, you can say --
"She made a pathetic entreaty, but her audience remained apathetic."

Note -- not to be confused with "apatetic", describing natural camouflage --
The stick insect's apatetic shape and coloring make it difficult to spot.

No comments:

Post a Comment