dejected

1 of 2

adjective

de·​ject·​ed di-ˈjek-təd 

dē-

1

: low in spirits : depressed

The team was dejected after the loss.

2

a

obsolete : downcast

… her eyes dejected and her hair unbound.

—Alexander Pope

b

archaic : thrown down

3

obsolete : lowered in rank or condition

… the dejected state wherein he is …

—Shakespeare

dejectedly adverb

dejectedness noun

dejected

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of deject entry 1

Synonyms of dejected

Adjective

• depressed
• unhappy
• sad
• heartbroken
• miserable
• melancholy
• upset
• sorry
• bad
• worried

Examples of dejected in a Sentence

Adjective

The dejected players left the field.

the dejected players slowly made their way back to the locker room, where they could mourn their defeat in private

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

The band is at its best at live shows, where, on a good night, their dejected mix of shoegaze, trip-hop, and other genres that have been beaten to death take on a revitalized energy. — Sam Goldner, Pitchfork, 6 Nov. 2026

In a social media poll Wednesday afternoon, Mary Talley Bowden—a dejected MAHA activist, anti-vaccine advocate, and doctor reprimanded for prescribing ivermectin to treat COVID-19—polled her followers about what should come next. — Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 5 Nov. 2026

In Brand New Day, Peter resumes his duties as a friendly neighborhood superhero in New York City, but also remains dejected that MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) are moving on with their lives without any memory of his love and friendship. — Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026

The sea of yellow applauding the efforts of the dejected Brazilian players who milled about, seemingly unwilling to accept that a match that took so long to really get going was over so quickly. — Hannah Keyser, CNN Money, 5 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

see deject entry 1

First Known Use

Adjective

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for dejected

• affected
• bisected
• collected
• connected
• corrected
• defected
• deflected
• detected
• directed
• dissected
• effected
• ejected

Kids Definition

dejected

adjective

de·​ject·​ed di-ˈjek-təd 

: low in spirits : sad, depressed

dejectedly adverb

dejectedness noun

Medical Definition

dejected

adjective

de·​ject·​ed di-ˈjek-təd 

: cast down in spirits : depressed