Meaning & use
woe is me
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Meanings
phrasefixed phrasehumorous
A dramatic exclamation meaning how unhappy I am, now mostly used jokingly to mock exaggerated self-pity.
Grammar: Stands alone as an exclamation and is not changed for tense: woe is me, not woe was me.
Patterns
- Oh, woe is me!
I have to wait ten whole minutes for the bus, woe is me!
Woe is me, the coffee machine is broken again.
Oh, woe is me, I only got second place.
phrasefixed phraseliteraryarchaic
A sincere cry of grief or despair, found in older or religious writing.
Grammar: Appears in older texts and quotations; sounds theatrical today.
Patterns
- woe is me for something
In the old ballad, the widow cried, woe is me, my love is lost.
The prophet's lament began with the words woe is me.
Actors in the play wailed woe is me as the storm broke.
Common combinations
- cry woe is me
- He likes to cry woe is me whenever it rains.
- a woe-is-me attitude
- Her woe-is-me attitude wore out her friends.
- woe-is-me story
- Nobody wanted another woe-is-me story at dinner.
- moan woe is me
- Stop moaning woe is me and start studying.
Synonyms and how they differ
- alas
- Alas is a short, literary exclamation of regret, while woe is me is a longer and more dramatic cry about oneself.
- poor me
- Poor me is the everyday, usually mocking version, often said with sarcasm.
- oh dear
- Oh dear is mild and sympathetic, with none of the theatrical self-pity of woe is me.
Word family
Practice
When Jake sighed that he had to wear his new coat in the snow, his sister laughed and said, "Oh, ___!"
Choose one answer.
Woe is me is a mocking exclamation of self-pity, which matches teasing Jake about a trivial complaint. The other phrases would be sincere encouragement.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “woe is me”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.