What is the difference?

We sympathize when we suffer with or like someone.We share the grief of the widow of our close friend, we sympathize

We empathize when we engage in, or feel, empathy. Empathy is the power of understanding and imaginatively entering into another person's feelings.

A professional counsellor claims to empathize,to imagine what it is like to be in almost any other person's position and to have their feelings.The counsellor does not claim to suffer the same as the other person: they just imagine what that person is thinking and feeling.They are capable of empathy but not of sympathy

Great answer Fred.



If you empathize then you can really put yourself in the shoes of another. Empathy is when someone is hurting an you can feel that hurt yourself. You can imagine what they are feeling. You pick up on the emotions of someone else and almost make their feeling a reality for you. It is to be compassionate. If a tragedy happens to someone, you may cringe when you hear about it because you feel empathy for the person. It's like when you watch someone get hurt and your face makes that "ouch" look. That is empathy.

To sympathize is basically to feel sadness for someone's situation. You don't pick up the feeling but can appreciate the sense of hurt. You can understand how someone is hurting and feel sad for them.

You send the family a sympathy card when someone dies to let them know that you understand they are hurting and you feel sorry for their situation. You wouldn't send an empathy card since that is to feel the pain yourself.

quote:

Originally posted by clarebear:
To sympathize is basically to feel sadness for someone's situation. You don't pick up the feeling but can appreciate the sense of hurt. You can understand how someone is hurting and feel sad for them.

You send the family a sympathy card when someone dies to let them know that you understand they are hurting and you feel sorry for their situation. You wouldn't send an empathy card since that is to feel the pain yourself.

Clare, I get the impression that you got it backwards. Sympathize means you "pick up the feeling" because you've been there or are there yourself. You understand because you know exactly how they feel. As Fred uses the word "share."

Empathy though means you understand how they feel only because you're trying to imagine how they must feel.

In some instances, when someone hasn't experienced the death of a loved one, they should actually send an empathy card.

Or did I misinterpret what you said.

quote:

We sympathize when we suffer with or like someone.We share the grief of the widow of our close friend, we sympathize

We empathize when we engage in, or feel, empathy. Empathy is the power of understanding and imaginatively entering into another person's feelings.

Shame on you, Fred. I can't empathise or sympathise with you ever again.

quote:

Clare, I get the impression that you got it backwards. Sympathize means you "pick up the feeling" because you've been there or are there yourself. You understand because you know exactly how they feel. As Fred uses the word "share."

Empathy though means you understand how they feel only because you're trying to imagine how they must feel.

In some instances, when someone hasn't experienced the death of a loved one, they should actually send an empathy card.

Or did I misinterpret what you said.

Jusork, in my opinion, Clare got it spot on.
Have a look at Wikipedia:

Sympathy is a social affinity in which one person stands with another person, closely understanding her or his feelings...Thus the essence of sympathy is that one has a strong concern for the other person, but does not share that person's feelings. Sympathy should not be confused with empathy (more than simply the recognition of another's suffering, empathy is actually sharing another's suffering, if only briefly).

Wikipedia is wrong. Sympathy is indeed from Greek meaning 'to suffer with' [someone]. So we sympathise when we are going through the same agonies, albeit less severely, as the widow of our closest friend.

The word 'sympathy' came into English in the late C16.It describes a natural human feeling.

The word 'empathy' is a modern creation. It dates only from the C20. It was, apparently, invented by psychiatrists: it is a rendering of the German word Einfuhling,literally 'a feeling in', put into Greek (as was the fashion with medical people). That gives a clue as to its original intended meaning. Empathy is what psychiatric counsellors have. They don't feel the pain, they imagine what it must be like to feel the pain.

Pessimistic footnote: empathy/sympathy may be going the same way as uninterested/disinterested. That is the fate of two similar words with different , but associated, meanings . The original post here gives hope to us pedants !

Well, I was happy to leave this question be after Fred's fine initial response, but I find that your latest comment, Fred, serves to confuse. Why, on this occasion, has Wikipedia got it wrong?
Einfühlung (not Einfuhling) is the German word for "empathy", as opposed to "Mitfûhlung", which is 'sympathy". Referring to the German -or indeed the Greek - helps when we remember that "ein" is "in" or "inside" and that "mit" traslates into English as "with". This shows the distance between sharing someone's emotions from the inside as it were, and merely as a looker-in.
A further point is that on order to empathise, you don't only need to "imagine" pain or hardship in the same way as a professional counsellor - you also empathise if you are in the same boat as the unfortunate other guy. For example, if you lose your job and are unhappy about it, you can empathise when you hear of the other's dismissal, since such is your own unfortunate lot. If you haven't lost your job, all you can feel is sympathy; if you like him, that is, for empathy without sympathy is very possible.

quote:

empathy without sympathy is very possible.

I think Colin has hit the nail on the head, above. Sympathy implies sadness, empathy could mean sharing a feeling of joy, embarrassment, pride, etc. You might well send a "Congrats" card from a feeling of empathy. N'est ce pas?.

I can empathize with this situation. I truly can appreciate not being able to come to an agreement in a thread. I can empathize with you all. I do feel a touch of sympathy for us since we can't decide but on the big scheme of things- it's just a thread. I do feel some sympathy for Jusork since he thinks I was confused. I should be a little more empathetic since I do understand he is trying to help. He is just so darn cute that he doesn't need my sympathy.

I haven't slept much so I'm sure you can empathize. I only posted since you are sympathetic to my needs and I could use some sympathy right now. A drink may help too. LOL

Thanks guys and gals!

I've got to let this soak in for a moment. I guess I was seeing it slightly wrong.