Definition of despair - Reverso English Dictionary
Noun
1.
hopelessnesscomplete loss of hope or confidence
- She was in despair after losing her job.
2.
causeperson or thing causing hopelessness
- The constant failures were his despair.
Verb
general senselose all hope or confidence
- He began to despair when he lost his job..
Expressions with despair
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cause someone to lose all hope
Her harsh words drove him to despair.
cause someone to feel extreme hopelessness or sadness
The constant criticism drove her to despair.
extreme sadness or hopelessness
She was in the depths of despair after the breakup.
feeling or place showing extreme sadness or hopelessness
After losing his job, he fell into a pit of despair.
cause someone to feel hopeless or without hope
The constant failures reduced him to despair.
recommendation to abandon effort
Her counsel of despair was to stop trying altogether.
feel very hopeless and think nothing will get better
After the bad news, she was in despair.
lose hope that something will happen or improve
Many teachers despair of ever reaching some students.
feeling very hopeless or having lost all hope
She looked in despair after hearing the bad news.
feeling completely overwhelmed by hopelessness or sadness
He sat alone, sunk in despair, after hearing the news.
to be overwhelmed by intense sadness
She was consumed with despair after hearing the tragic news.
full of deep, overwhelming hopelessness or sadness
He gave a in black despair look.
lowest and most hopeless moment in a situation
After losing his job, he reached the nadir of despair.
feeling extremely hopeless or sad while doing something
She wandered in the depths of despair after the bad news.
describes being in the lowest point of despair
She felt at the nadir of despair after the breakup.
lose motivation after comparing with others
He would compare and despair, making it hard to stay focused on his goals.
situation where one feels trapped and despondent
After losing his job, he felt like he was on a ledge of despair.
Origin of despair
Latin, de (down) + sperare (hope)
Terms with despair included in their meaning
💡 A powerful way to uncover related words, idioms, and expressions linked by the same idea — and explore meaning beyond exact word matches.
frustration
cover face with hands in frustration or despair
emotion
situation or state of despair
despair
in a manner showing no hope or expectation
catastrophe
situation causing extreme fear or despair
emotion
express extreme frustration or despair
emotion
in a way that shows despair
despair
give up all hope completely in a situation
despair
everything has failed or there is no hope left
despair
impossible to improve or save
despair
in a situation where there is no hope
desperation
state of despair often linked to drinking
figurative
period of difficulty or despair
emotion
state of hopelessness and despair
despair
lack of any expectation or possibility
emotion
feeling of hopelessness and despair
emotion
show strong anger or despair by grinding the teeth together hard
despair
feeling life has no purpose or joy
despair
in a state of deep despair
personal struggle
time of deep personal crisis or emotional despair
mythology
journey into a place of suffering or despair
chaos
journey into chaos or despair
emotion
deep sense of despair or anguish
emotional depth
from deep feelings of misery or despair
morality
state of moral degradation or spiritual despair
Examples of despair in a sentence
Despair gripped the nation during the crisis. Her despair was evident after the tragic news. The team's despair grew with each lost game. She began to despair after failing the exam. They started to despair when the rescue team was delayed.
View all translations of despair
Click below to see the appropriate translations facing each meaning.
- French:désespoir, désespérer, ...
- German:Verzweiflung, verzweifeln, ...
- Italian:disperazione, disperarsi, ...
- Spanish:desesperación, desesperarse, ...
- Portuguese:desespero, desesperar, ...
- Chinese:绝望, 失去信心, ...
- Japanese:絶望, 絶望する, ...
- Arabic:يَأْس, يئسَ, ...
- Hebrew:יֵיאוּשׁ, לְהִתְיַיֵּאֵשׁ, ...
- Russian:отчаяние, терять надежду, ...
- Ukrainian:відчай, впадати у відчай, ...
- Hindi:निराशा, निराश होना, ...
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