disconsolate
Americanadjective
-
without consolation or solace; hopelessly unhappy; inconsolable.
Loss of her pet dog made her disconsolate.
- Synonyms:
- miserable, sorrowful, melancholy, sad, dejected, heartbroken
-
characterized by or causing dejection; cheerless; gloomy.
disconsolate prospects.
- Synonyms:
- miserable, sorrowful, melancholy, sad
adjective
-
sad beyond comfort; inconsolable
-
disappointed; dejected
Related Words
See desolate.
Other Word Forms
- disconsolately adverb
- disconsolateness noun
- disconsolation noun
Etymology
Origin of disconsolate
1325–75; Middle English < Medieval Latin disconsōlātus, equivalent to Latin dis- dis- 1 + consōlātus consoled, past participle of consōlārī to console 1; -ate 1
Explanation
If you are sad and can't be cheered up, you're disconsolate. Why were you disconsolate after scoring a touchdown? Oh...it was for the other team. In addition to meaning "inconsolable," the adjective disconsolate can also mean "dejected." Most people would be disconsolate after being laid off from a job, losing a beloved pet, or missing out on tickets to see a favorite band play live. This word ultimately derives from the Latin verb consolari, meaning "to cheer (someone) up or offer comfort to."
Vocabulary lists containing disconsolate
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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.
Marianne is first consumed by her own infatuation, then disconsolate when Willoughby dumps her for an heiress, and finally felled by a fever.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 14, 2025
Fulham's players looked understandably disconsolate - and their counterparts know the feeling, having already been on the receiving end of late sucker punches themselves against Brighton, Arsenal and Liverpool this season.
From BBC • Oct. 25, 2025
After his opening round at Royal Troon - a stumbling, disconsolate 78 that summoned memories of Portrush in 2019 - the only logical response to that query is ‘not this year’.
From BBC • Jul. 18, 2024
DeChambeau seemed to sense it himself, judging by the disconsolate look on his face after he punched out into the fairway and found himself confronted with another likely bogey.
From Seattle Times • Apr. 13, 2024
The interior voice nagging me not to be a fool—to save my skin and take off my skis and walk down, camouflaged by the scrub pines bordering the slope—fled like a disconsolate mosquito.
From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath
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.
