Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Pitiful

Pitiful , adjective

1.
Full of pity; tender-hearted; compassionate; kind; merciful; sympathetic.
The Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. — James v. 11
2.
Piteous; lamentable; eliciting compassion.
A thing, indeed, very pitiful and horrible. — Spenser
3.
To be pitied for littleness or meanness; miserable; paltry; contemptible; despicable.
That's villainous, and shows a most pitiful ambition in the fool that uses it. — Shakespeare