sorry

Use the word "sorry" when apologizing for mistakes or talking about bad behavior.

• I’m sorry, I made a mistake.
• Oops! I’m sorry.
• I’m sorry I broke your chair.
• Don says he’s sorry for being so rude.
• Angela said she was sorry for being late.
• The man refused to apologize or say he was sorry.
• Why can’t he just say he’s sorry?
• Are you sorry for what you have done?
• You had better say you’re sorry.

You can also use the word "sorry" when expressing sadness, grief, or condolences.

• The students are sorry to see their school is closing.
• We’re sorry to hear about the loss of life in that accident.
• I’m so sorry to hear about your mother. (The word "sorry" is often used in condolences offered to friends and relatives of someone who has died.)

If you can’t hear what a person said and want that person to repeat it, you can use the word "sorry."

• I’m sorry. I didn’t hear what you said.
• Sorry, can you repeat that?
• Sorry?

Sometimes "sorry" is used to criticize or belittle a person or a thing:

• You’re a sorry excuse for a human being.
• This is a very sorry situation.
• That was a sorry performance.
• A sorry little chocolate cake sat in the middle of the table, untouched and overshadowed by all the other desserts.
• The young woman made a sorry spectacle of herself.

He feels very sorry about what he has done.

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Date of publication: January 20, 2017