as in grieved
to lose all hope or confidence
we despaired when we saw how little time we had left to complete our project
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Recent Examples of despaired
In her interview, Guthrie also despaired over the possibility that her fame could have made her mother a target for kidnappers, Page Six also reported.
—
Martha Ross, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
The Herald’s competitors despaired of ever competing with that paper’s speedy acquisition of news, and one, the Journal of Commerce, eventually gave up and created a cooperative agreement with the Herald that would become instrumental in the creation of the Associated Press.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2026
Democrats rejoiced; Republicans despaired.
—Kevin Igoe, Baltimore Sun, 4 Feb. 2026
The news of her 23-year-old son’s execution shocked and despaired the world.
—Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
Anyone who ever despaired about their outstanding mortgage remaining virtually static despite months of repayments will relate.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2025
Martha Ross, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026
The Herald’s competitors despaired of ever competing with that paper’s speedy acquisition of news, and one, the Journal of Commerce, eventually gave up and created a cooperative agreement with the Herald that would become instrumental in the creation of the Associated Press.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Mar. 2026
Democrats rejoiced; Republicans despaired.
—Kevin Igoe, Baltimore Sun, 4 Feb. 2026
The news of her 23-year-old son’s execution shocked and despaired the world.
—Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
Anyone who ever despaired about their outstanding mortgage remaining virtually static despite months of repayments will relate.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despaired
Verb
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The whole country mourned her loss and grieved for her two young daughters, Ellie and Carrie, who were just 6 and 2 at the time.—
Madeline Mitchell,
USA Today,
21 Mar. 2026
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But anyone who has ever grieved knows there will be no closure for these families; there will be only an opening, a void where someone was and now isn’t.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Thunder bench outscored the Knicks’ second unit, 25-13, and Miles McBride, in his first game back from a sports hernia surgery that sidelined him 28 games, suffered an injury and grabbed at his stomach before leaving the floor and going to the locker room in pain.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
30 Mar. 2026
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This settlement allows class members who suffered damages between June 2008 and July 2019 to receive compensation.—
Chase Jordan,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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His death wasn’t only mourned by the fashion community, it was mourned by us all.—
Serena Turner,
Vanity Fair,
30 Mar. 2026
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That link only strengthened last year, when Salah mourned the death of teammate Diogo Jota alongside millions of Reds fans around the world.—
Ben Church,
CNN Money,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Despaired.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despaired. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
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