empathy

What does “empathy” mean?

noun.the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.

SAT Usage

this term often appears in passages related to psychology, interpersonal relationships, or social issues. It emphasizes a deeper emotional connection and understanding between individuals, highlighting the importance of compassion and perspective-taking, which sets it apart from similar terms like sympathy, which denotes a more superficial acknowledgment of another's feelings without the same depth of connection.

Common Confusions

Empathy implies a deep emotional connection and understanding of another's feelings, while sympathy usually suggests a more superficial acknowledgment of those feelings without the same level of personal engagement.

Example Sentences

• She listened with deep empathy as he described his loss.

• The empathy she felt was overwhelming.

Word Parts: How to Remember “empathy”

Break “empathy” into its parts: en- (in, into) + -path- (feeling, suffering). Knowing roots like these helps you decode unfamiliar SAT vocabulary.

• Prefix: en- in, into (Greek)
• Root: -path- feeling, suffering (Greek)