discouragement
Americannoun
-
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
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.
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
They got 40 before discouragement, exhaustion, and, eventually, a torrential downpour forced the group to disband.
From Slate • Oct. 30, 2024
What made me keep on climbing in face of such discouragement, I don’t know, but I did, and that noon I had crow eggs and wild salad for lunch.
From "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
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.
