regrettable
adjEtymology From regret + -able.
1
Able to be regretted, especially deserving of regret.
- The officers' actions were regrettable, yes, but there's nothing to be done now but to relocate everyone to the mainland in a calm and orderly manner.
- Jeeves: Foreign travel often liberates emotions best kept in check, sir. The air of North America is notoriously stimulating in this regard, as witness the regrettable behavior of its inhabitants in 1776. B. Wooster: Hm? What happened in 1776, Jeeves? Jeeves: I prefer not to dwell on it, if it's convenient to you, sir.1991 May 12, “Kidnapped!”, in Jeeves and Wooster, Series 2, Episode 5:
1 more example
- And when they do, readers may find themselves on an unfamiliar website with an odd name, faced with a photo gallery of regrettable tattoos or a listicle on 22 celebrities with ugly spouses.2019 October 4, Tiffany Hsu, “You Will Be Shocked by This Article”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 25 Mar 2020:
- Derived terms
- regrettableness, unregrettable
- Related terms
- regret, regretful, regretfully, regretfulness, regrettably, regretter