regret
Regret is feeling sad or unhappy about a decision or action that you've made.
When someone says they regret something, they usually mean that they wish they had done things differently. It's common to regret choices we make when we're young and still figuring out what's best for us. For example, maybe you decided not to go to college right after high school, but now you realize it was a mistake and you regret not taking the opportunity. It could also be something small like regretting eating too much food or wearing an outfit that didn't turn out as expected. Regret is often used in conversations when people are looking back on their past choices and thinking about what they would do differently if they had to do it again.
How common is "regret"?
It has a balanced usage among all categories: speech, fiction, newspapers and academic texts.
noun
Emotional pain on account of something done or experienced in the past, with a wish that it had been different; a looking back with dissatisfaction or with longing.
verb
To feel sorry about (a thing that has or has not happened), afterthink: to wish that a thing had not happened, that something else had happened instead.
Example: He regretted his words.
Real examples of "regret" in context
