means A feeling of sorrow or sympathy for someone else's suffering or misfortune, sometimes tinged with a sense of being above them.

from From Old French 'pite' (compassion), itself from Latin 'pietas' — meaning dutifulness, devotion, and tenderness toward family and gods. That same root gave us 'piety,' so pity and piousness are siblings: both began as the soft loyalty you owe to others. Over centuries, English narrowed the warmth down to feeling sorry for someone.