despairing 1 of 2

adjective

di-ˈsper-iŋ How to pronounce despairing (audio)
Definition of despairingnext
1
as in hopeless
emphasizing or expecting the worst despairing predictions regarding the effects of global overpopulation

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in desperate
feeling or showing no hope despairing applicants need to be reminded that most students are eventually accepted somewhere

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

despairing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of despair
as in grieving
to lose all hope or confidence we despaired when we saw how little time we had left to complete our project

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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How does the adjective despairing differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of despairing are desperate, despondent, and hopeless. While all these words mean "having lost all or nearly all hope," despairing suggests the slipping away of all hope and often despondency.

despairing appeals for the return of the kidnapped child

When is it sensible to use desperate instead of despairing?

While the synonyms desperate and despairing are close in meaning, desperate implies despair that prompts reckless action or violence in the face of defeat or frustration.

one last desperate attempt to turn the tide of battle

When might despondent be a better fit than despairing?

While in some cases nearly identical to despairing, despondent implies a deep dejection arising from a conviction of the uselessness of further effort.

despondent about yet another rejection

Where would hopeless be a reasonable alternative to despairing?

The synonyms hopeless and despairing are sometimes interchangeable, but hopeless suggests despair and the cessation of effort or resistance and often implies acceptance or resignation.

the situation of the trapped miners is hopeless

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of despairing
Adjective
This book should be sent to the White House, and to our earnest Attorney General, and to everyone in this country able to read—which may, however, alas, be a most despairing statement. —Literary Hub, 22 Dec. 2025 Take a break from comparing and despairing. —Jennifer Moss, CNBC, 10 Dec. 2025
Verb
The book’s tone shifts from philosophical to playful to despairing to sensual, and on around again. —The New Yorker, New Yorker, 31 Dec. 2025 These are the people who, despairing of finding their way out honestly, simply smash and bash their way through the corn willy-nilly. —Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 19 Oct. 2024 See All Example Sentences for despairing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despairing
  1. hopeless
  2. desperate
  3. grieving
  4. cynical
  5. unhappy
  6. suffering
  7. sad
  8. mourning
Adjective
  • From what looked like a hopeless position just a few weeks ago, the subscribers are now off the bottom of the table and gearing up for a potential title challenge.
    — Oliver Kay, New York Times, 30 Jan. 2026
  • And if the hypotheticals are not enough to dissuade, history is littered with teams trading away their future for immediate glories, seeing their plans implode, and being left with a ruinous future that becomes a hopeless present while another team reaps the benefits.
    — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 30 Jan. 2026
Definition of hopeless
Adjective
  • Leftists are desperate for martyrs.
    — , FOXNews.com, 6 Feb. 2026
  • Five days into the desperate search for 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, authorities have not identified any suspects or persons of interest, said Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Feb. 2026
Definition of desperate
Verb
  • While protesters may be frightened and grieving after last month's bloodbath, they're not mollified.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The 35-year-old realtor, who wrote and self-published a children's book on grieving following her husband's death, was arrested in 2023 following a lengthy investigation.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 10 Feb. 2026
Definition of grieving
Adjective
  • In his experiences and chronicles of the great ideological battles of the twentieth century, Curzio Malaparte was a shape-shifter—pitiless, clinical, cynical, unsentimental, indifferent to morality and idealism.
    — Leah Downey, The New York Review of Books, 7 Feb. 2026
  • That didn’t happen, not least because of the cynical fecklessness of regional powers.
    — Juan Pablo Spinetto, Twin Cities, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of cynical
Adjective
  • Many people have a profound attachment to suffering and staying in unhappy relationships and so a lot of my work is trying to figure out why.
    — Daisy Jones, Vogue, 10 Feb. 2026
  • The day after the Super Bowl, some people are guaranteed to be unhappy.
    — Mike Snider, AZCentral.com, 9 Feb. 2026
Definition of unhappy
Verb
  • Many limerents describe their experience in terms that are usually associated with drug addiction—feeling high, craving supply, suffering withdrawal.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Feb. 2026
  • Harbin, who transferred from Portage after also attending Bishop Noll and Don Bosco, gained eligibility, and Young returned after suffering a broken hand.
    — Michael Osipoff, Chicago Tribune, 13 Feb. 2026
Definition of suffering
Adjective
  • Meanwhile, Nancy Guthrie's Arizona community gathered for a vigil Wednesday evening while the world can't look away from an incident that is deeply, horrifically sad and frightening.
    — Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026
  • The song is sophisticated and simple, sad and somehow triumphant.
    — Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 5 Feb. 2026
Definition of sad
Verb
  • Massachusetts residents are mourning the brand’s exit from its hometown.
    — Li Goldstein, Bon Appetit Magazine, 6 Feb. 2026
  • Lil Jon is mourning the death of his son, Nathan Smith, at 27.
    — Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Feb. 2026
Definition of mourning

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Cite this Entry

“Despairing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despairing. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on despairing

Nglish: Translation of despairing for Spanish Speakers

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