noun
empathy
EHM-puh-thee
noun
1
The ability to understand and share someone else's feelings.
"A good doctor needs empathy as much as medical knowledge."
"Great teachers show empathy toward struggling students."
How to Use Empathy
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishPutting yourself in someone else's shoes and really understanding how they feel.
Common mistake
Not the same as sympathy — sympathy is feeling sorry FOR someone; empathy is understanding what they feel, almost as if from inside.
Easily confused with
Common pairings
show empathy
empathy for someone
lack of empathy
Word Forms
empathies plural
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A good doctor needs _____ as much as medical knowledge.
Etymology
Coined in 1909 by the psychologist Edward Titchener from Greek empatheia ("feeling into"), to translate the German word Einfühlung.