Both Uses of

wretched
in
The Return of the King

But deep in his heart there was something that restrained him: he could not strike this thing lying in the dust, forlorn, ruinous, utterly wretched.†
Chpt 6.3 *

wretched = miserable or very bad

As the wretched pair passed by the company they came to the hobbits, and Saruman stopped and stared at them; but they looked at him with pity.†
Chpt 6.6

Definition:

very bad

in various senses, including:

unfortunate or miserable -- as in "wretched prisoners sleeping on the cold floor"
of poor quality -- as in "wretched roads"
morally bad -- as in "The wretched woman stole his wallet."