How to say "I'm sorry" to express sympathy for misfortune without inviting "It's not your fault"

Possible Duplicate:
Does apologizing entail recognizing being at fault?

Often, in conversation, something like this will happen:

A: I didn't sleep well last night; My dog ran away; or A family member passed away last night.
B: I'm sorry.
A: Why are you sorry? It isn't your fault.

How do you succinctly and conversationally express that you feel sympathetic for the other person's misfortune without inviting the response (or a variation thereof) "It's not your fault"?

The closest I have to that are "My condolences" or "You have my sympathy," but those phrases don't feel particularly conversational.

You can stipulate the 'expressing sorrow for' rather than apologetic sense by: "Oh, that's awful. I'm so sorry for you."

"I feel bad for you" expresses empathy without conveying the idea you are asking for forgiveness.

Macmillan has some interesting information on this. Under there phrasal listings for sorry, they say:

• feel sorry for someone 1 to feel sympathy for someone because they are in a difficult or unpleasant situation

but they also list:

• I'm sorry [also Sorry, when spoken] 1 used for telling someone that you are ashamed or unhappy about something that you have done that has hurt or upset them : I'm sorry – I shouldn't have blamed you. 2 used in a social situation as a way of asking someone to forgive you for doing something rude, embarrassing, etc. : Sorry, I should have called to let you know I'd be late.

I've found that many people say, "I'm sorry," when they wish to convey "I feel sorry for you." I think most hearers overlook it, and make the mental jump just fine, but, apparently, some do not, and they mistakenly wonder if "I'm sorry" means, "Let me apologize," when it really means, "I feel bad for you."

I, too, am often reluctant to say "I feel sorry for you", perhaps because it sounds too much like this phrasal use of the word sorry:

• feel sorry for yourself 1 to feel sad about your life instead of trying to do things that could make you feel better

In my experience, feeling sorry for yourself is usually construed to be a bad thing, so I can understand why someone might be reluctant to say, I feel sorry for you, and instead opt for the more concise I'm sorry. As others have said, if you want to avoid a possible misunderstanding, there are plenty of other ways to convey that sentiment. You could say something like, "I feel bad for you," or you could even just offer a one-word interjection of empathy: "Ouch!"

Sorry can be a confusing word, I guess. Sorry about that.

The phrase that sucks in your example already expresses sympathy. The use of the apologetic non-apology I'm sorry following that sentiment is entirely redundant, though it is commonly used idiomatically in the way you've described.

If you must attach some further compassionate sentiment, you might instead include a little empathy, That sucks, I've recently lost a family member myself, or express willingness to help them resolve the problem (if possible), That sucks, have you tried chamomile tea?

I'm sorry is widely understood to be an expression of compassion rather than an acknowledgement of personal fault. The reply it isn't your fault is a purposely obtuse reaction. The listener, if a native English speaker, knows that you did not intend any contrition or assume any blame. You aren't pledging to make a future change to avoid a repeat of the situation. Such a reply was probably intended to be playful or teasing, or exposes underlying hostility.

Easy. Just say:

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

Then it is quite clear that you are not assuming responsiblity for the ‘sorrowful’ event. The latter, if expressed in full, would be something like:

“I’m sorry I caused that to happen.”