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dis·cour·age | \ di-ˈskər-ij 
, -ˈskə-rij \
, -ˈskə-rij \discouraged; discouraging
Definition of discourage
1 : to deprive of courage or confidence : dishearten was discouraged by repeated failure
2a : to hinder by disfavoring
trying to discourage absenteeism
b : to dissuade or attempt to dissuade from doing something
tried to discourage her from going
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Other Words from discourage
discourageable \ di-ˈskər-i-jə-bəl , -ˈskə-ri- \ adjective
, -ˈskə-ri- \ adjectivediscourager noun
discouragingly \ di-ˈskər-i-jiŋ-lē , -ˈkə-ri- \ adverb
, -ˈkə-ri- \ adverb
Examples of discourage in a Sentence
Try not to let losing discourage you.
The area's dry climate discourages agriculture.
He claims the new regulations will discourage investment.
That type of behavior ought to be discouraged.
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Recent Examples on the Web The shelter-in-place restriction were put in place in May to discourage outsiders from visiting the county and potentially exacerbating the spread of the coronavirus.
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Chronicle Staff, SFChronicle.com, "Coronavirus news from the Bay Area: June 24-25," 27 June 2020 These approaches might not discourage authorities from using the technology, however, which potentially opens up other problems.
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Karen Kwon, Scientific American, "How to Protect Yourself during Protests," 26 June 2020 The decision to elevate the investigation comes as hospital workers told New Mexico In Depth and ProPublica that the hospital appeared to hide documents and discourage cooperation with state investigators.
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Bryant Furlow, ProPublica, "A Hospital Was Accused of Racially Profiling Native American Women. Staff Said Administrators Impeded an Investigation.," 22 June 2020 National Institutes of Health guidelines also discourage use of the drugs outside of clinical trials.
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Cassidy Morrison, Washington Examiner, "FDA pulls emergency use authorization for hydroxychloroquine, the drug touted by Trump as COVID-19 remedy," 15 June 2020 Wednesday’s smaller crowd did not discourage Leah Derray of Indy10 Black Lives Matter.
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Shari Rudavsky, The Indianapolis Star, "150 gather at Monument Circle for 13th day of protests," 11 June 2020 Signs will be posted to discourage hand-shaking, furniture in common areas removed, and extensive cleaning protocols, including to equipment, will take place multiple times a day.
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Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, "NFL memo shows how dangerous football can be in face of coronavirus | Opinion," 8 June 2020 Popular Mobilization, commonly known as Pop Mob, doesn’t discourage people who chose to affect change by destroying property.
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oregonlive, "What’s the right way to protest George Floyd’s death? Thousands in Portland say peacefully, but some say with violence," 6 June 2020 Lots at roughly half of the 280 state parks, beaches and historic sites had been shut for more than two months to discourage overcrowding and spreading the coronavirus.
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Los Angeles Times, "After two months, parking lots reopen at many California state parks and beaches," 3 June 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'discourage.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for discourage
discourage
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of discourage
: to make (someone) less determined, hopeful, or confident
: to make (something) less likely to happen
: to try to make people not want to do (something)
See the full definition for discourage in the English Language Learners Dictionary
discourage
verbdis·cour·age | \ dis-ˈkər-ij \
\discouraged; discouraging
Kids Definition of discourage
1 : to make less determined, hopeful, or confident
Yet another failed attempt didn't discourage him.
2 : to make less likely to happen
The law discourages speeding.
3 : to try to persuade not to do something
Don't let them discourage you from trying out.
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Comments on discourage
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Time Traveler for discourage
The first known use of discourage was in the 15th century
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