despair

English

Pronunciation

  • (UK) IPA: /dɪˈspeə(ɹ)/
  • (US) IPA: /dɪˈspɛər/
  • Audio (US)
    		(file)

Verb

despair (third-person singular simple present despairs, present participle despairing, simple past and past participle despaired)

  1. (transitive, obsolete) To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.
    • Milton
      I would not despair the greatest design that could be attempted.
  2. (transitive, obsolete) To cause to despair.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Sir W. Williams to this entry?)
  3. (intransitive, often with “of”) To be hopeless; to have no hope; to give up all hope or expectation.

Translations

to despair of
to cause to despair
to be hopeless

Noun

despair (uncountable)

  1. Loss of hope; utter hopelessness; complete despondency.
    He turned around in despair, aware that he was not going to survive
  2. That which is despaired of.

Synonyms

Translations

loss of hope

Anagrams

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Last modified on 15 April 2013, at 16:51