rueful
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A rueful look crosses Niki’s face when he opens his first safe to rescue Harry’s hearing aids, as if he knows this can’t lead anywhere good, and indeed it does not.
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
"In one day," he says, with a rueful smile.
From BBC • Feb. 3, 2026
Good actors “act the way people used to act,” he says with a rueful nostalgia at odds with his youth.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 30, 2025
The only catharsis or healing to be found in the film comes from the titular apology, more a rueful word of caution than anything else.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 27, 2025
“Just long,” she echoed with a rueful smile, laying one hand to her slender neck and rolling her head from side to side.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Vocabulary lists containing rueful
List 1
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Tuck Everlasting
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"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 8–13
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