- past participle of disappoint.
- past tense form of disappoint.
disappointed
Americanadjective
-
depressed or discouraged by the failure of one's hopes or expectations.
a disappointed suitor.
-
Obsolete. inadequately appointed; ill-equipped.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of disappointed
First recorded in 1545–55; disappoint + -ed 2
Explanation
Disappointed means discouraged or sad because what you hoped for didn't happen. If you write a fan letter to your favorite actress hoping for a personal reply, you're likely to be disappointed. The original French root of disappointed is desappointer, which has one meaning that's basically "to fail to keep an appointment." So you might imagine the word disappointed like this: you made an appointment with a friend, but he blew it off. What could leave you more disappointed than that?
Vocabulary lists containing disappointed
In the Mood? 100 Words to Describe Emotions
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"My Favorite Chaperone," Vocabulary from the short story
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Hooked on a Feeling, List 1
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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.
Shreeshan Venkatesh of the Climate Action Network said the group was "deeply disappointed" by the failure.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
Phil Trubey, a California entrepreneur who attended Thursday’s event, was disappointed that his Roadster isn’t entering production sooner.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
Those who thought it would be easy were typically frustrated and disappointed.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
Mayor of the West Midlands Richard Parker said he was "very disappointed by news that the BBC plans to move its production out of the city".
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
I’m not sure if I’m more disappointed or relieved that he isn’t outside.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
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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.
