dismay

  • 11dismay — 1 noun (U) the worry, disappointment, and unhappiness you feel when something unpleasant happens: with/in dismay: Amanda read her exam results with dismay. | They stared at each other in dismay. | to sb s dismay: I found to my dismay that I had… …

    Longman dictionary of contemporary English

  • 12dismay — dis|may1 [dısˈmeı] n [U] the worry, disappointment, or unhappiness you feel when something unpleasant happens with/in dismay ▪ They stared at each other in dismay. to sb s dismay ▪ I found to my dismay that I had left my notes behind. ▪ The… …

    Dictionary of contemporary English

  • 13dismay — I UK [dɪsˈmeɪ] / US noun [uncountable] the feeling of being very worried, disappointed, or sad about something surprising or shocking that has happened Local people expressed their dismay at the size of the pay rise. to someone s dismay/to the… …

    English dictionary

  • 14dismay — dis|may1 [ dıs meı ] noun uncount the feeling of being very worried, disappointed, or sad about something surprising or shocking that has happened: Local people expressed their dismay at the cuts in social services. to someone s dismay/to the… …

    Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • 15dismay — {{11}}dismay (n.) c.1300, from DISMAY (Cf. dismay) (v.). {{12}}dismay (v.) late 13c., dismaien, from O.Fr. *desmaier (attested only in pp. dismaye), from L. de intensive prefix + O.Fr. esmaier to trouble, disturb, from V.L. *exmagare divest of… …

    Etymology dictionary

  • 16dismay — [[t]dɪ̱sme͟ɪ[/t]] dismays, dismaying, dismayed 1) N UNCOUNT: oft to N with poss Dismay is a strong feeling of fear, worry, or sadness that is caused by something unpleasant and unexpected. [FORMAL] Local councillors have reacted with dismay and… …

    English dictionary

  • 17dismay — I. transitive verb (dismayed; dismaying) Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo French desmaier, from des dis + maier, from Vulgar Latin * magare, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German magan to be able more at may Date: 13th century 1. to… …

    New Collegiate Dictionary

  • 18dismay — I (New American Roget s College Thesaurus) n. consternation, terror; discouragement. v. t. appall; discourage. See fear, dejection. II (Roget s IV) n. Syn. alarm, consternation, anxiety, disheartenment; see confusion 2 , fear 2 . v. Syn. appall,… …

    English dictionary for students

  • 19dismay — [13] The underlying meaning of dismay is ‘deprive of power’ – its second syllable is ultimately the same word as the verb may. It comes via Old French desmaier from Vulgar Latin *dismagāre ‘deprive of power’, a compound verb formed from the… …

    The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • 20dismay n — Dat s de end of April, said Tom in dismay …

    English expressions