despair
Americannoun
-
loss of hope; hopelessness.
- Synonyms:
- disheartenment, gloom
- Antonyms:
- hope
-
someone or something that causes hopelessness.
He is the despair of his mother.
verb (used without object)
-
despairs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
despaired,
past participle, past
-
despairing
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
despairs,
present (3rd person singular)
-
despaired,
past participle, past
-
despairing
present participle
verb
-
to lose or give up hope
I despair of his coming
-
obsolete (tr) to give up hope of; lose hope in
noun
-
total loss of hope
-
a person or thing that causes hopelessness or for which there is no hope
Usage
What does despair mean? To despair is to lose all hope. Despair can also be used as a noun meaning complete hopelessness. Despair usually involves deep sadness and emotional pain about something that has happened or that hasn’t happened—something usually triggers the despair. This is especially the case in serious and very negative situations that involve finality, such as death or a devastating loss in a political election. The verb despair implies that one is giving up—that they believe there is nothing more to be done to make things better. When someone says, “Don’t despair,” they’re telling you not to lose hope—to keep trying or to believe that things can improve. When used as a verb, despair is sometimes followed by the word of and the thing for which hope has been lost, as in I have despaired of her ever coming back. Much less commonly, despair can be used as a noun referring to someone or something that causes despair, as in He is the despair of the nation. The word despairing can be used as an adjective to describe people who are experiencing despair or things that involve despair, as in a despairing look. Example: He was filled with despair at the sight of the scoreboard, which showed an insurmountable lead with only minutes left.
Synonym Usage
Despair, desperation, despondency, discouragement, hopelessness refer to a state of mind caused by circumstances that seem too much to cope with. Despair suggests total loss of hope, which may be passive or may drive one to furious efforts, even if at random: in the depths of despair; courage born of despair. Desperation is usually an active state, the abandonment of hope impelling to a furious struggle against adverse circumstances, with utter disregard of consequences: an act of desperation when everything else had failed. Despondency is a state of deep gloom and disheartenment: a spell of despondency. Discouragement is a loss of courage, hope, and ambition because of obstacles, frustrations, etc.: His optimism yielded to discouragement. Hopelessness is a loss of hope so complete as to result in a more or less permanent state of passive despair: a state of hopelessness and apathy.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
despairsimple
-
despairssimple
-
have despairedperfect
-
has despairedperfect
-
am despairingprogressive
-
are despairingprogressive
-
is despairingprogressive
-
have been despairingperfect progressive
-
has been despairingperfect progressive
Past
-
despairedsimple
-
had despairedperfect
-
was despairingprogressive
-
were despairingprogressive
-
had been despairingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of despair
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English despeir (noun), despeiren (verb), from Anglo-French despeir, Old French despoir (noun), desperer (verb), from Latin dēspērāre “to be without hope,” from dē- de- + spērāre “to hope” (derivative of spēs “hope”)
Explanation
Despair is the feeling of not having any hope left. If you completely forgot to study for your final exam in math, you might feel despair when your teacher passes out the test. Despair can also refer to someone or something that causes you to worry or be sad. Unfortunately, some children are the despair of their parents. The verb despair means to lose hope. Despair is from Latin desperare "to be without hope," from the prefix de- "without" plus sperare "to hope," from spes "hope."
Vocabulary lists containing despair
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A Long Walk to Water
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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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:
Henrietta can experience a sense of "despair and distress" during her luteal phase, including feeling as though she is useless or having "intense flashbacks to embarrassing or upsetting experiences".
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
His Peter fends off despair by insisting that he’s fine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
But remember, despair isn’t activism—it’s just another impediment to progress.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
She invests the song’s complex storyline of submission and rebellion with pointed irony here and genuine despair there.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
One person spreading pessimax can easily plunge a dozen acquaintances into despair.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
Insp Boiles despairs over parents buying them for children: "We do have parents attend a police station quite a lot, getting very, very upset that their child's £500 e-scooter has been seized."
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
When her TV show is canceled, the actress does what you might predict given the movie’s exaggerated look and tone: She despairs at what she sees in the mirror and reaches for an outrageous solution.
From New York Times ● May 24, 2024
Kakar despairs at the plight of Afghans who remain in Pakistan.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 28, 2024
Then Isabel’s despairs stack, pressing her to expand her inquiry beyond the United States and diagnose history’s gravest injuries.
From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2024
“I will name him. Yes. I will name this mouse Despereaux, for all the sadness, for the many despairs in this place. Now, where is my mirror?”
From "The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread" by Kate DiCamillo
But closer to the high-security perimeter, a crowd of worshippers despaired as police officers blocked their route.
From Barron's ● Jun. 7, 2026
The 28-year-old software engineer despaired of ever reaching America.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2025
In the early, chaotic days of the COVID-19 pandemic, transitional-kindergarten teacher Elizabeth Lam despaired.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 18, 2025
You despaired because buying merchandise—both Fanatics’ own and products it retails—did not satiate your appetite to do e-commerce with this company.
From Slate ● Mar. 7, 2025
I despaired of that day ever reaching its end, but of course it did, and with it our journey.
From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood
“Especially in despairing economic times we need to ensure people aren’t being denied access.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
The angry, despairing look on team owner Lawrence Stroll's face in Bahrain said it all.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2026
Dunk, though wounded and despairing of Baelor’s death, wins his trial and becomes a legend that characters in “A Song of Ice and Fire” recall as a true knight.
From Salon ● Feb. 25, 2026
But Nina soon found herself despairing, once she realized she could not leave her hiding place.
From Barron's ● Feb. 2, 2026
She wept heartbroken tears, tears as inconsolable as Lady Meng’s and as despairing as Nuwa’s.
From "When the Sea Turned to Silver" by Grace Lin
Definitions 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.
