MEANING
To express sympathy and sorrow to someone whose relative or friend has died.
Use it for
offering sympathy after a death; formally expressing condolences to a family; describing visitors showing respect to bereaved people; distinguishing sympathy for mourners from one’s own griefSpecifies expressing sympathy to bereaved people, rather than mourning only one’s own loss. Writing functions: Mourning / Loss.
Words that belong together
- condole with the family
- condole with someone on a death
- condole with the bereaved
On the page
She stayed behind to condole with the family after the others had gone.
Old neighbors came to condole with his mother, speaking softly at the door.
Word forms
- Base
- condole
- Past tense
- condoled
- Past participle
- condoled
- Present participle
- condoling
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- condole
- Present continuous
- am/is/are condoling
- Present perfect
- have/has condoled
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been condoling
- Past
- condoled
- Past continuous
- was/were condoling
- Past perfect
- had condoled
- Past perfect continuous
- had been condoling
- Future
- will condole
- Future continuous
- will be condoling
- Future perfect
- will have condoled
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been condoling
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Usually condole with someone on or over a death. Forms: condoles; condoled; condoled; condoling. In ordinary speech, offer condolences or express sympathy is more usual. Register: formal. Commonness: uncommon; chiefly formal or ceremonious (dictionary-informed qualitative editorial estimate; not a measured frequency).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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