as in despair
the state of being discouraged
I tried desperately to avoid discouragement after failing the bar exam twice
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Recent Examples of discouragement
First, discouragement is not a good quality to base an investment decision on.
—
Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 July 2025
As the realities of relocating set in, his girlfriend’s enthusiasm quickly turned into doubt and discouragement.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 17 July 2025
This is because there’s a lot of woolly thinking out there, combined with apathy, distrust and discouragement.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
But Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling on gender-affirming care for transgender youth was the kind of attention many advocates didn’t want and the capper to a month of discouragement.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for discouragement
Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 July 2025
As the realities of relocating set in, his girlfriend’s enthusiasm quickly turned into doubt and discouragement.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 17 July 2025
This is because there’s a lot of woolly thinking out there, combined with apathy, distrust and discouragement.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
But Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling on gender-affirming care for transgender youth was the kind of attention many advocates didn’t want and the capper to a month of discouragement.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for discouragement
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discouragement
Noun
-
Much of the country was in despair then as the Great Recession rolled on.—
John Dorfman,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Columnist Nancy Armour knows all about Bears despair.—
Chris Bumbaca,
USA Today,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The giant streamer, which just had a massive theatrical hit with KPop Demons Hunters, generally shies away from theatrical to the dismay of theater owners.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
18 Sep. 2025
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Moments after it was confirmed that Charlie Kirk died from a gunshot wound during a college event Wednesday in Utah, several Arkansas political leaders went to social media to express their dismay over the conservative activist's death.—
Ella McCarthy,
Arkansas Online,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Discouragement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discouragement. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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