discouragement
Americannoun
-
discouragements
plural
-
an act or instance of discouraging.
- Antonyms:
- encouragement
-
the state of being discouraged.
- Synonyms:
- hopelessness, dejection, depression
- Antonyms:
- encouragement
-
something that discourages.
Poor health and poverty are grave discouragements.
- Synonyms:
- obstruction, obstacle, impediment, damper, deterrent
- Antonyms:
- encouragement
Synonym Usage
See despair.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of discouragement
1555–65; < Middle French descouragement, Old French descoragement. See discourage, -ment
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:
These mistakes, he argues, could lead to stigma and discouragement within local communities as they feel helpless.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
While ChatGPT occasionally offered discouragement, only the chatbots from Snap and Anthropic reliably refused these requests, according to the researchers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
The moments of discouragement are so heavy in this industry.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2025
Takes landing on the “not-so-good” side of the plate are accompanied by his passionate discouragement from leaving bad reviews based on his evaluations.
From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2023
It locks children into patterns of achievement and under achievement, encouragement and discouragement, that stretch on and on for years.
From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell
We can have no illusions about the discouragements which lie ahead.
From Salon ● Mar. 5, 2023
Now his experimentalism and transnationalism aren’t discouragements but invitations to a larger global audience.
From New York Times ● Mar. 3, 2023
A player who understands the disappointments and discouragements that not just Capitals fans, but a generation of Washington fans carry deep in their hearts.
From Washington Times ● May 6, 2018
This comes on top of other discouragements to growth.
From Economist ● Mar. 1, 2018
Why the commerce with France has been subjected to so many discouragements, 202.
From An Inquiry Into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations by Germain Garnier
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
