What does wretch mean?
Wretch is a literary and increasingly archaic word for a person who is deeply unfortunate, miserable, or contemptible. As a noun, it can be used with pity, as when someone is described as a poor or unfortunate wretch, but it often carries a stronger, disparaging implication, portraying someone as despicable or deserving of contempt. As an adjective, wretch means miserable or contemptible, though this use now appears mainly in older writing and in deliberately elevated or dramatic contexts. Because one word can express both sympathy and scorn, its effect depends heavily on tone and context. By contrast, the derived adjective wretched remains common in phrases such as wretched weather and a wretched experience. Wretch is especially useful when a writer wants to evoke an older, more emotionally charged register or to characterize someone through a blend of misery and moral judgment.
A person regarded as deeply unfortunate, miserable, or despicable.
"She pitied the young wretch, who had lost both his home and his livelihood."
Chiefly literary or archaic. It may express pity, contempt, or both.
Miserable, deeply unfortunate, or contemptible.
"They sheltered from the wretch weather beneath a leaking roof."
Archaic and uncommon in modern English; the derived form wretched is now much more usual.
The standard plural of the noun is wretches, though the word itself is now uncommon.
"The novel portrays two unfortunate wretches struggling to survive in the city."
In older writing, wretch often means simply an unfortunate person; in modern English it more often brands someone as despicable.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does wretch come from?
Wretch descends from Old English wræcca, an old word for an unhappy or unfortunate person, and ultimately from a Germanic root associated with destruction or ruin. It belongs to a wider Germanic word family that includes wreck and wreak, although the modern meanings of those related words have become more specialized. The original English noun developed an increasingly contemptuous sense alongside its older association with misfortune.
Related word forms
How wretch is actually used
The word is now mainly literary, archaic, or deliberately disparaging. As a noun, it may convey pity for someone's misfortune, contempt for their character, or both; as an adjective, it is uncommon in modern usage.
Easily confused with wretch
Wretch is chiefly a noun for an unfortunate or despicable person, whereas wretched is primarily an adjective meaning deeply unhappy or contemptible.
Wretch is a noun or archaic adjective, while retch is a verb meaning to expel the contents of the stomach.