from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Pathetic \Pa*thet"ic\ (p[.a]*th[e^]t"[i^]k), a. [L. patheticus,
Gr. paqhtiko`s, fr. paqei^n, pa`schein, to suffer: cf. F.
path['e]tique. See {Pathos}.]
1. Expressing or showing anger; passionate. [Obs.]
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2. Affecting or moving the tender emotions, esp. pity or
grief; full of pathos; as, a pathetic song or story.
"Pathetic action." --Macaulay.
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No theory of the passions can teach a man to be
pathetic. --E. Porter.
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{Pathetic muscle} (Anat.), the superior oblique muscle of the
eye.
{Pathetic nerve} (Anat.), the fourth cranial, or trochlear,
nerve, which supplies the superior oblique, or pathetic,
muscle of the eye.
{The pathetic}, a style or manner adapted to arouse the
tender emotions.
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