Empathy vs Sympathy | Difference & Definitions
The nouns empathy and sympathy overlap in meaning because they are both used to describe how we share another person’s feelings or emotions.
- Empathy is the ability to understand how another person feels because you can imagine how you would feel if you were in the same situation. In other words, you are able to put yourself in the other person’s shoes.
- Sympathy is the feeling that you understand another person’s emotions, especially when you feel sorry for someone who is in a sad or unpleasant situation.
| Empathy in a sentence examples | Sympathy in a sentence examples |
|---|---|
| As a former refugee, she is able to write about displaced persons with real empathy.
His insensitive comments displayed a total lack of empathy for the victims’ suffering. She thanked the nurses and doctors for the compassion and empathy they had shown throughout her husband’s illness. |
He wrote to Paul’s widow to express his sympathy.
There was a lot of public sympathy for the workers, who have been on strike for almost two months. It’s his own fault, so I don’t really have much sympathy for him. |
Empathy meaning
You can say you have empathy for a person if you are able to share their emotions because you can imagine how you would feel in their situation. This could be because you have been through a similar situation or because you understand the reasons behind their feelings.
The noun empathy belongs to the same word family as the verb empathize and the adjective empathetic.
Empathize often combines with the prepositions “for,” “with,” and “between.”
She is a very empathetic teacher.
Empathic is a less frequently used alternative to the adjective empathetic.
Sympathy to mean compassion
When the noun sympathy is used to mean “feeling sorry for someone who is experiencing an unfortunate situation,” it is similar in meaning to the words compassion and pity.
Sympathy belongs to the same word family as the verb sympathize and the adjective sympathetic.
Sympathize often combines with the preposition “with.”
He is a very sympathetic listener, and I feel much better after talking to him.
Sympathy to mean unity
The noun sympathy can also be used with the preposition “in” to mean “in harmony/unity with.” You can add adjectives such as “complete” and “total” for emphasis.
Sympathy to mean loyalty
If you have sympathies with an idea or belief, you have feelings of loyalty or support for it.
She denied that she has sympathies with extremist ideologies.
My (deepest) sympathies
Sympathies can also mean your feeling of sadness for another person, particularly for someone who has lost a loved one. When used like this, it is often preceded by a possessive pronoun and combines with the verbs offer and send, and the adjective deepest.
Members of the public who wish to offer their sympathies can sign a condolence book at the town hall.
Please send her my deepest sympathies when you see her.
Frequently asked questions about empathy vs sympathy
- What does empathetic mean?
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If you are empathetic then you have empathy, which is the ability to share or understand other people’s emotions because you can imagine how you would feel in other people’s situations (e.g., “She was very empathetic when I told her about my problems”).
Empathy and sympathy overlap in meaning and can often be used as synonyms.
- What does sympathetic mean?
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If you are being sympathetic to someone, you are being nice to them by showing that you understand their feelings.
It is often used in the context of a negative experience (e.g., “He was very kind and sympathetic when I told him my bad news”) and belongs to the same word family as the noun sympathy.
Sympathy and empathy overlap in meaning and can often be used as synonyms.
