1
as in ominous
being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come
a dire forecast of a plunge in stock prices
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terrifying
causing fear
a series of dire tremors that hinted at a huge volcanic eruption
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3
as in urgent
needing immediate attention
a dire need for food and medicine in the famine-stricken country
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4
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
with stock prices steadily falling, these are dire days on the trading floor
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of dire
Now, after years of preparation for conflict by all sides, and after dire predictions about the dangers of a regional war, Israel has shown itself determined to destroy its decadeslong foes – with the near-complete military support of the United States.
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Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Dec. 2024
In 2023, a Mississippi school district facing dire teacher shortages reported that students were learning geometry, Spanish, and high school science via a software program.
—Allison Pugh, WIRED, 7 Dec. 2024
In the 10-episode Season 2, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 7 Dec. 2024
Ignoring it can also have dire business consequences.
—Hec Paris Insights, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dire 
Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Dec. 2024
In 2023, a Mississippi school district facing dire teacher shortages reported that students were learning geometry, Spanish, and high school science via a software program.
—Allison Pugh, WIRED, 7 Dec. 2024
In the 10-episode Season 2, Mark and his friends learn the dire consequences of trifling with the severance barrier, leading them further down a path of woe.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 7 Dec. 2024
Ignoring it can also have dire business consequences.
—Hec Paris Insights, Forbes, 5 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for dire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dire
Adjective
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That’s an ominous sign for higher education leaders, who now must prepare to address a slow, continuing slide in high-school seniors, who make up the bulk of their entering students every year.Michael T. Nietzel, Forbes, 11 Dec. 2024
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Rolling with the sound of Slo-Be Bryant 3, one of the great West Coast tapes of the 2020s, Slo-Be’s steely, ominous murmurs give his sentimental gangster rap the air of sorcery.Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 9 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The paranormal phenomena spooking Spongebob and Squidward has a mundane explanation, but the entity flickering the lights turns out to be none other than Nosferatu, who reassures them with a terrifying smile; amusingly, Spongebob and Squidward are relieved to see him.Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
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In the early hours of New Year's Day 2021 in Canton, Georgia, Morgan Metzer was awakened to a terrifying sight.Michael Loftus, CBS News, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Given the breakneck speed at which OpenAI is continuing its for-profit conversion, this is a special case with an urgent necessity for action.Alex Heath, The Verge, 14 Dec. 2024
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In Sudan alone, the United Nations estimates that an internal conflict has left 25 million people, half the country’s population, in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.Michael Posner, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Remember, this was a pretty bleak time for basic cable.Josef Adalian, Vulture, 19 Dec. 2024
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The reality that the Giants have four more games of this despair is painfully bleak.Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 15 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The film reveals how a young Putin gains control of the various Russian bureaucracies through sinister manipulation, cutting off the internet and other media when necessary.Peter Bart, Deadline, 1 Dec. 2024
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The Fungus Seduces Male Flies To Spread Faster Beyond its ability to manipulate living flies, E. muscae wields another sinister tool in its arsenal: turning the corpses of its victims into irresistible traps for healthy male flies.Scott Travers, Forbes, 24 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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The Chiefs also have rookie Xavier Worthy, but the team needs another receiver on par with Hopkins to ensure the offense stays formidable.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 12 Dec. 2024
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By her 30th birthday, Giovanni was regularly publishing poems that tapped into the transformative power of focusing inward as a community—and working through what that meant in practice alongside formidable intellectuals such as James Baldwin.Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Due to problems at home, the toddler had been diagnosed with an acute stress disorder that was impacting his speech and ability to regulate his emotions.Cayla Bamberger, New York Daily News, 15 Dec. 2024
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And yet Elwood and Turner experience Nickel as an acute narrative dilemma, the dilemma of their lives.Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 14 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Two of the movies feature both Adams and Julianne Moore, and what’s really depressing is that such a phenomenal pairing got wasted on hapless material.Matthew Jacobs, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2024
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And seeing even a preview of that was so depressing for me.Okla Jones, Essence, 4 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near dire
Cite this Entry
“Dire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dire. Accessed 25 Dec. 2024.
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