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• disappointment
  disappointment

  noun

  the act or fact of disappointing.
• Disappointment
  Disappointment

  noun

  Cape Disappointment, a cape in southwestern Washington State, projecting into the Pacific Ocean on the north of the mouth of the Columbia River.

disappointment

¹ American  

[dis-uh-point-muhnt] / ˌdɪs əˈpɔɪnt mənt /

noun

• disappointments
  plural

1. the act or fact of disappointing.

   All of his efforts only led to the disappointment of his supporters.

   Synonyms:

   frustration, defeat, failure

2. the state or feeling of being disappointed.

   Her disappointment was very great when she didn't get the job.

3. a person or thing that disappoints.

   The play was a disappointment.

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Disappointment ² American  

[dis-uh-point-muhnt] / ˌdɪs əˈpɔɪnt mənt /

noun

1. Cape Disappointment, a cape in southwestern Washington State, projecting into the Pacific Ocean on the north of the mouth of the Columbia River.

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disappointment British  

/ ˌdɪsəˈpɔɪntmənt /

noun

1. the act of disappointing or the state of being disappointed

2. a person, thing, or state of affairs that disappoints

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• predisappointment
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• disappointments
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of disappointment

First recorded in 1605–15; disappoint + -ment

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Explanation

A disappointment is what happens when things don't go your way. That sad, frustrated feeling of loss that follows? It's also called disappointment. The noun disappointment comes from the Middle French word disappointer, meaning “undo the appointment,” or “remove from office.” It is true that a friend canceling your plans or losing your job is a disappointment, but today disappointment can describe anything that crushes your hopes, ruins your day, or otherwise lets you down.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

disappointment Disappointment disappointments

While I spoke with 20 people for this piece, I received 178 individual responses of all kinds, ranging from shock and awe to relative disappointment to distinctly modern moviegoing gripes.

From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026

Yet the questionnaire left enough room for interpretation, triggering disappointment.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 19, 2026

"The real disappointment was the batting in the first dig on a really good wicket," Conrad said.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

His implied disappointment motivated me to return to UCSB.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

I open it and have to hide my disappointment.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

"Disappointment in returns could trigger a sudden pullback in financing and turn the capex boom into a protracted investment bust, with potential knock-on effects on financial conditions," it said in its annual report.

From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026

Disappointment followed at the 2020 Tokyo Games which she later described as the "biggest low" of her career.

From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2025

Disappointment is a familiar feeling when it comes to Find a Grave.

From Slate ● Oct. 24, 2024

All was going according to plan until they approached Disappointment Cleaver.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 25, 2023

Disappointment had put an edge to Judith’s tongue.

From "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

The resulting brain fog has been blamed for diplomatic mishaps, Olympic disappointments and the recent downfall of the chief executive behind Jim Beam.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 5, 2026

"There's great feelings, and there's obviously disappointments, and sometimes the smaller disappointments lead to being a little bit bigger," he added.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

You can see a decade of disappointments in a shot of Lozita going slack-faced as her mother reminisces about how nice she and Big Ant looked at their wedding.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

But his subsequent political career was one of tranquil irrelevance punctuated by recurring disappointments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 4, 2026

“Start afresh. There is no need to carry yesterday’s fears and disappointments into a brand-new day—especially on Christmas!”

From "The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: Book I: The Mysterious Howling" by Maryrose Wood

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Related Words

• adversity
• blow
• chagrin
• defeat
• discontent
• disenchantment
• disillusionment
• dissatisfaction
• failure
• frustration
• letdown
• regret
• setback

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