Definition of despair Despair

/dɪspɛˈɹ/ - [disper] - des•pair

We found 17 definitions of despair from 6 different sources.

What does despair mean?

WordNet

Noun Plural: despairs
despair - the feeling that everything is wrong and nothing will turn out well; "they moaned in despair and dismay"; "one harsh word would send her into the depths of despair"
		hope one of the three Christian virtues
		feeling the experiencing of affective and emotional states; "she had a feeling of euphoria"; "he had terrible feelings of guilt"; "I disliked him and the feeling was mutual"
		hopelessness the despair you feel when you have abandoned hope of comfort or success
		resignation, surrender a formal document giving notice of your intention to resign; "he submitted his resignation as of next month"
		disheartenment, dismay, discouragement a communication that leaves you disheartened or daunted
despair - a state in which all hope is lost or absent; "in the depths of despair"; "they were rescued from despair at the last minute"; "courage born of desperation"
		desperation
		status, condition the relative position or standing of things or especially persons in a society; "he had the status of a minor"; "the novel attained the status of a classic"; "atheists do not enjoy a favorable position in American life"
Verb despairs, despairing, despaired
despair - abandon hope; give up hope; lose heart; "Don't despair--help is on the way!"
		hope intend with some possibility of fulfilment; "I hope to have finished this work by tomorrow evening"
		despond lose confidence or hope; become dejected; "The supporters of the Presidential candidate desponded when they learned the early results of the election"

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Wiktionary

despair (Noun)
Loss of hope; utter hopelessness; complete despondency.
despair (Noun)
That which is despaired of.
despair (Verb)
To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.
despair (Verb)
To cause to despair.
despair (Verb)
To be hopeless; to have no hope; to give up all hope or expectation.

Webster DictionaryWebster's Unabridged Dictionary 📘

despair (v. i.)
To be hopeless; to have no hope; to give up all hope or expectation; -- often with of.
despair (v. t.)
To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.
despair (v. t.)
To cause to despair.
despair (n.)
Loss of hope; utter hopelessness; complete despondency.
despair (n.)
That which is despaired of.

OmegaWiki DictionaryOmegaWiki Dictionary Ω

despair
To lose hope.
despair
Loss of hope.

Chambers DictionaryChamber's 20th Century Dictionary 📕

despair
de-spār′, v.i. to be without hope: to despond.—n. want of hope: utter hopelessness: that which causes despair.—adj. Despair′ful (Spens.).—p.adj. Despair′ing, apt to despair: full of despair.—adv. Despair′ingly. [O. Fr. desperer—L. desperāre, -ātum—de, neg., and sperāre, to hope.]

Part of speech

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despair, verb, present, 1st person singular of despair (infinitive).
despair, verb (infinitive).
despair, noun, singular of despairs.

Pronunciation

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despair in sign language

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