disappoint
Americanverb (used with object)
-
disappoints,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disappointed,
past participle, past
-
disappointing
present participle
-
to fail to fulfill the expectations or wishes of.
His gross ingratitude disappointed us.
- Synonyms:
- disenchant, dishearten, disillusion, sadden
-
to defeat the fulfillment of (hopes, plans, etc.); thwart; frustrate.
to be disappointed in love.
verb (used without object)
-
disappoints,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disappointed,
past participle, past
-
disappointing
present participle
verb
-
to fail to meet the expectations, hopes, desires, or standards of; let down
-
to prevent the fulfilment of (a plan, intention, etc); frustrate; thwart
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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disappointsimple
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disappointssimple
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have disappointedperfect
-
has disappointedperfect
-
am disappointingprogressive
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are disappointingprogressive
-
is disappointingprogressive
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have been disappointingperfect progressive
-
has been disappointingperfect progressive
Past
-
disappointedsimple
-
had disappointedperfect
-
was disappointingprogressive
-
were disappointingprogressive
-
had been disappointingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disappoint
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Middle French word desappointer. See dis- 1, appoint
Explanation
When you fail to meet people's expectations, you disappoint them. You can also disappoint yourself or find that things let you down, like a rainy trip to the beach that disappoints you. The word disappoint comes from the Middle French word desappointer, which meant "dispossess of appointed office," in the 14th century. Today, disappoint can apply to anyone or anything that does not achieve the expected results — and ways to express that we are disappointed go beyond firing people or kicking them out of office. For example, if you buy a product that disappoints, you won't buy it again.
Vocabulary lists containing disappoint
Commonly Misspelled Words, List 4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Unchanged 2026 net interest income guidance of at least $46 billion might disappoint against expectations of around $47 billion, JPM says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
Jet de Ranitz, NPO's executive chairman, acknowledged their decision would disappoint many Dutch Eurovision fans and stressed that the contest would still be aired on the public channels.
From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026
"The build-up to this... has been phenomenal, and on the day it did not disappoint," he added later.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
The fourth quarter has a reputation for being a strong period for stocks, and he doesn’t expect this year to disappoint.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
He was afraid she would stop coming, that he would disappoint her—or even worse, bore her.
From "Breadcrumbs" by Anne Ursu
"If AI demand disappoints, spending cuts could hit chipmakers, data-center builders and their financiers at once," he said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
In the second scenario, the pace of AI adoption disappoints.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
The stock’s run up this year could position it for a steeper decline if Target’s guidance disappoints, though its relatively discounted valuation may limit the downside risk, some analysts say.
From Barron's ● Mar. 2, 2026
"I wouldn't want to be a baker who disappoints her, but I can see her being very encouraging at the same time."
From BBC ● Feb. 14, 2026
The thought of her there both thrills and disappoints me, and then I feel sick for feeling disappointed.
From "The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
Shaheen, who didn’t go public about placing the hold earlier this year, called the deal “grotesque” this week and said she was disappointed in Rubio for allowing it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
Investors were disappointed by a miss of market expectations for operating profit by the semiconductor division, according to Bloomberg News.
From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026
U.S. stocks declined, led by the Nasdaq Composite, after Alphabet’s earnings disappointed investors and sparked another bout of AI worries.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
But he added some followers were disappointed in the lack of drama.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
He was only a little disappointed that it was like getting face full of cold steam.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Tech firms were again on the back foot Friday after another round of disappointing earnings from Wall Street titans fanned already deep concerns about the AI investment boom.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
Tracy Woo, a principal analyst at Forrester, said Alphabet's disappointing search business results "highlights the challenge of funding massive AI investments while maintaining the strength of established businesses."
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Alphabet’s disappointing earnings sparked another bout of jitters about artificial intelligence in the broader stock market, with the Nasdaq slumping more than 1%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
You don’t have to go far down a Reddit rabbit hole to find disappointing reports on Delta’s 767s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 28, 2026
If I start to tear up just because Papi’s hard on me, Janae will straight up bawl at any hint of disappointing our father.
From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi
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Get a wordDefinitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
