desperation

noun

des·​per·​a·​tion ˌde-spə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: loss of hope and surrender to despair

2

: a state of hopelessness leading to rashness

Synonyms

• despair
• despond
• despondence
• despondency
• forlornness
• hopelessness

Examples of desperation in a Sentence

She felt overcome by desperation.

the desperation of severe poverty

They hired me out of desperation, because they couldn't get anyone else.

Finally, in desperation, he tried to flee the country.

Recent Examples on the Web

The death toll in Gaza since Israel launched its war against Hamas reached 40,000 people earlier this week, a bleak figure that underscores the desperation in the enclave for a reprieve from ten months of bloody conflict. —Rob Picheta, CNN, 16 Aug. 2024

Of course, even the iconic Looney Tunes has proven unsafe under David Zaslav’s debt-payoff desperation. —Tony Maglio, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2024

Yet such assaults betray a transparent desperation—feeble barbs hurled from the mezzanine. —Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker, 27 July 2024

In a frantic final sequence with the U.S. up 67-64, France's Gabby Williams hoisted a desperation jumper over the outstretched arm of Breanna Stewart that banked in at the buzzer. —Susan Baek, NBC News, 11 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English disperacioun, desperacioun, borrowed from Anglo-French desperaciun, borrowed from Latin dēspērātiōn-, dēspērātiō, from dēspērāre "to give up as hopeless, despair of" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at despair entry 2

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

desperation

noun

des·​per·​a·​tion ˌdes-pə-ˈrā-shən 

1

: a loss of hope and surrender to misery or dread

2

: a state of hopelessness leading to extreme recklessness