despairing

[dih-spair-ing] / dɪˈspɛər ɪŋ /

ADJECTIVE

upset, despondent

Synonyms

STRONGEST

grief-stricken melancholic melancholy pessimistic suicidal

STRONG

blue dejected depressed oppressed sunk

WEAK

anxious at end of one's rope brokenhearted can't win cynical desperate disconsolate downcast forlorn frantic hopeless in pain in the dumps in the pits in the soup inconsolable miserable no-win not a prayer sad shot down strabilious weighed down wretched

Antonyms

STRONG

cheerful encouraged happy joyous

WEAK

confident expectant hopeful

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But he's already despairing about his future housing prospects.

From BBC • May 12, 2026

But Nina soon found herself despairing, once she realized she could not leave her hiding place.

From Barron's • Feb. 2, 2026

Any freelance journalist who finds herself despairing over the paltry rates that today’s assigning editors are offering might want to familiarize herself with Fanny Fern before her next negotiation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 27, 2026

But the protagonist is a Latino man crying over the film’s despairing score that he’ll “do anything” to return to his wife and kids and “live again.”

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2025

And then he wept, despairing, for his own land, trudging down beside the endless wash of the wide, wide sea, weary and desolate as the sea.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer

despairing

Example Sentences

Related Words