discouraged

[ dih-skur-ijd, -skuhr- ]

/ dɪˈskɜr ɪdʒd, -ˈskʌr- /

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See synonyms for discouraged on Thesaurus.com

adjective

deprived of or lacking in courage, hope, or confidence:The discouraged writer discarded the poem, but it was retrieved by a young soldier who sent it off for publication.Another discouraged mother reported that she had no friends with whom to share childcare duties.

dissuaded or obstructed from doing something: A third of the discouraged firms would probably have qualified for loans had they applied.A discouraged worker is one who wants to work but is not looking for a job because of a perceived lack of demand.

disapproved of:Climbing on the safety railing is a strongly discouraged activity.We consider payday lenders to be a discouraged industry.

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of discourage.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of discouraged

discourage + -ed²

OTHER WORDS FROM discouraged

un·dis·cour·aged, adjective

Words nearby discouraged

discount house, discount market, discount rate, discount store, discourage, discouraged, discouragement, discourse, discourse analysis, discourteous, discourtesy

How to use discouraged in a sentence

By creating uncertainty, the federal government discouraged both states and private companies from acting on their own initiative, which has delayed our national response.
Times of strife can lead to medical innovation—when governments are willing|By Jeffrey Clemens/The Conversation|September 9, 2020|Popular-Science
Whether the boycott movement discourages streamers and moviegoers from seeing the film remains to be seen.
Mulan’s Disney+ release is reigniting a boycott movement|Naomi Xu Elegant|September 4, 2020|Fortune
Sixteen percent say pandemic-imposed restrictions at hospitals and doctors’ offices are discouraging them from moving forward.
34% of would-be parents say they may have children sooner because of COVID-19|ehinchliffe|August 24, 2020|Fortune
Republicans, meanwhile, are leery of continuing the full payments, saying they will discourage people from returning to work.
Economists Think Congress Should Keep Paying Unemployed Workers $600 A Week — Or Even More|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|July 21, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

These discouraging numbers have led many businesses to focus on improving their products and services, thus doing their best to retain a loyal customer.
Digital marketing during COVID-19 times: Data-driven insights|Eugene Lata|June 10, 2020|Search Engine Watch
Press are also discouraged from asking and shouting out questions at the Royals during press calls.
Media, Dress Smart For Kate|Tom Sykes|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Jackson says that at first, her parents thought it was strange and discouraged her from getting into Korean pop stars.
Black K-Pop Fans Come Out of the Closet|Sterling Wong|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Perhaps even the indefatigable John Kerry might be discouraged from more futile and dispiriting peace talks.
Here’s What the U.S. Has to Do to Deal With the Mad Middle East|Leslie H. Gelb|July 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Its contracted readership has not discouraged a larger group, maybe more than ever before, from writing it.
What the Forward Prize Doesn’t Recognize About Poets|Mandy Kahn|July 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Ivory purchases are officially discouraged by the Chinese government.
China’s Blood Ivory Bazaar|Brendon Hong|June 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He believed in the value of viva voce discussion, and discouraged all unnecessary inter-departmental correspondence.
Fifty Years of Railway Life in England, Scotland and Ireland|Joseph Tatlow
My brother recovered his old spirit and refused to be discouraged by my pessimistic view of his expedition.
The Soldier of the Valley|Nelson Lloyd
On the very summit of one of these is perched a ruined castle, whose inaccessible position discouraged nearer acquaintance.
British Highways And Byways From A Motor Car|Thomas D. Murphy
But I reckon the smuggling of Chinks into this section has been pretty well discouraged.
Motor Matt's "Century" Run|Stanley R. Matthews
The colony of Virginia discouraged with their losses and various misfortunes embarked for England.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology|Joel Munsell