despair

despair
—despairer, n.
/di spair"/, n.
1. loss of hope; hopelessness.
2. someone or something that causes hopelessness: He is the despair of his mother.
v.i.
3. to lose, give up, or be without hope (often fol. by of): to despair of humanity.
v.t.
4. Obs. to give up hope of.
[1275-1325; ME despeir (n.), despeiren (v.) < AF despeir, OF despoir (n.), despeir-, tonic s. of desperer (v.) < L desperare to be without hope, equiv. to de- DE- + sperare to hope, deriv. of spes hope]
Syn. 1. gloom, disheartenment. DESPAIR, DESPERATION, DESPONDENCY, DISCOURAGEMENT, HOPELESSNESS refer to a state of mind caused by circumstances that seem too much to cope with. DESPAIR suggests total loss of hope, which may be passive or may drive one to furious efforts, even if at random: in the depths of despair; courage born of despair. DESPERATION is usually an active state, the abandonment of hope impelling to a furious struggle against adverse circumstances, with utter disregard of consequences: an act of desperation when everything else had failed.
DESPONDENCY is a state of deep gloom and disheartenment: a spell of despondency. DISCOURAGEMENT is a loss of courage, hope, and ambition because of obstacles, frustrations, etc.: His optimism yielded to discouragement. HOPELESSNESS is a loss of hope so complete as to result in a more or less permanent state of passive despair: a state of hopelessness and apathy.
Ant. 1. hope.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • Despair — • The voluntary and complete abandonment of all hope of saving one s soul and of having the means required for that end Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Despair     Despair      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Despair — De*spair , n. [Cf. OF. despoir, fr. desperer.] 1. Loss of hope; utter hopelessness; complete despondency. [1913 Webster] We in dark dreams are tossing to and fro, Pine with regret, or sicken with despair. Keble. [1913 Webster] Before he [Bunyan]… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Despair — De*spair , v. t. 1. To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] I would not despair the greatest design that could be attempted. Milton. [1913 Webster] 2. To cause to despair. [Obs.] Sir W. Williams. [1913… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • despair — (v.) early 14c., from stem of O.Fr. desperer be dismayed, lose hope, despair, from L. desperare to despair, to lose all hope, from de without + sperare to hope, from spes hope (see SPEED (Cf. speed)). The noun (c.1300) replaced native wanhope.… …   Etymology dictionary

  • despair — ► NOUN ▪ the complete loss or absence of hope. ► VERB ▪ lose or be without hope. ● be the despair of Cf. ↑be the despair of ORIGIN from Latin desperare, from sperare to hope …   English terms dictionary

  • Despair — De*spair , v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Despaired}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Despairing}.] [OE. despeiren, dispeiren, OF. desperer, fr. L. desperare; de + sperare to hope; akin to spes hope, and perh. to spatium space, E. space, speed; cf. OF. espeir hope, F.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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  • despair — [di sper′] vi. [ME despeiren < OFr desperer < L desperare, to be without hope < de , without + sperare, to hope < spes, hope < IE base * spēi, to prosper, expand: see SPEED] to lose hope; be without hope: usually with of vt.… …   English World dictionary

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  • Despair — est un film germano français de Rainer Werner Fassbinder sorti en 1978. Sommaire 1 Synopsis 2 Distribution 3 Fiche technique 4 Ré …   Wikipédia en Français

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