condolences

English

Etymology

From Latin condoleo (“I feel another's pain”)

Pronunciation

• IPA: /kənˈdoʊlənsəz/, /ˈkɒndələnsəz/

• Audio (plural, US)

  (file)

Noun

condolences

1. Plural form of condolence
2. (plural only) comfort, support, or sympathy offered to the family and friends of somebody who has died

   I sent her a card expressing my condolences after her mother passed away.

See also

• condolence

Translations

plural form of condolence

• Finnish: pahoittelut (fi)

• Swedish: kondoleanser (sv) pl

sympathy

• Berber:

  Tashelhit: afcad (afshad) m

• Dutch: innige deelneming (nl)
• Hungarian: részvét (hu)

funeral expression

• Greek: συλλυπητήρια (el) (syllypitíria) n pl

• Spanish: pésame (es) m

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.

Translations to be checked

• Slovene: sožalje (sl) n

Interjection

condolences

1. Expressing perfunctory or jocular condolence wishes.
   • 1992, Martin Cruz Smith, Red Square, page 120:

     "What were you doing at the cemetery?" / "Burying my father." / "Oh." Rodionov grunted as if he had expected a more imaginative excuse. "Condolences."

   • 2008 July 15, NPR, “When Does It Go Too Far?”, Talk of the Nation:

     Let's get another caller on the line. This is Camille. Camille with us from Visalia in California. / Visalia, California that's correct. / Go ahead please. / Hi. I'm an African-American woman and when I first saw the cover - let me preface this. I'm in central California, which is very conservative. And... / Condolences.

Antonyms

• congratulations