Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

despondent

/dɪˈspɒndənt/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.68 in modern English

Syllables: de-spon-dent
IPA: /dɪˈspɒndənt/

14

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

3

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

In low spirits from loss of hope or courage.

Example Sentences

"Thanks to that penny he had just spent so recklessly [on a newspaper] he would pass a happy hour, taken, for once, out of his anxious, despondent, miserable self. It irritated him shrewdly to know that these moments of respite from carking care would not be shared with his poor wife, with careworn, troubled Ellen."
"“Last year, I was despondent that it was so hard to dislodge the iron grip of Google,” said Sridhar Ramaswamy, who previously oversaw advertising for Google, including Search ads, and now runs Neeva. “But technological moments like this create an opportunity for more competition.”"

Etymology

From Latin dēspondēns, from the verb despondere (“to give up, to abandon”).

Regional Pronunciation

British English: /dɪˈspɒndənt/

Inflected Forms

more despondent (comparative) most despondent (superlative)

Derived Forms

despondency despondently undespondent

Synonyms

atrabiliary atrabilious blitheless dispirited blue bummed out chapfallen cheerless chopfallen crestfallen cut up damp

Antonyms

cheerful hopeful

Rhymes With

correspondent respondent corespondent

Questions

How do you pronounce despondent?: The recorded pronunciation is /dɪˈspɒndənt/.
What does despondent mean?: In low spirits from loss of hope or courage.
Where does despondent come from?: From Latin dēspondēns, from the verb despondere (“to give up, to abandon”).

How to pronounce despondent

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “despondent”.
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