Synonyms of despairing

despairing 1 of 2

adjective

di-ˈsper-iŋ 

1

as in hopeless

emphasizing or expecting the worst

despairing predictions regarding the effects of global overpopulation

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hopeless
• cynical
• desperate
• pessimistic
• bleak
• depressing
• discouraging
• negative
• defeatist
• downbeat
• grim
• bearish
• fatalistic
• nihilistic
• somber
• unlikely
• hostile
• morose
• cheerless
• disheartening
• sullen
• inauspicious
• unpromising
• gloomy
• sepulchral
• dismal
• nihilist
• funereal
• dreary
• saturnine
• desolate
• contrary
• comfortless

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• hopeful
• optimistic
• upbeat
• encouraging
• rosy
• promising
• likely
• bright
• heartening
• golden
• fair
• propitious
• reassuring
• comforting
• positive
• auspicious
• good
• favorable
• Panglossian
• Pollyannaish
• Pollyanna
• romantic
• utopian
• rose-colored
• cheerful
• cheering
• visionary
• idealist
• cheery
• sunny
• chipper

2

as in desperate

feeling or showing no hope

despairing applicants need to be reminded that most students are eventually accepted somewhere

Synonyms & Similar Words

• desperate
• hopeless
• unhappy
• sad
• disappointed
• mournful
• despondent
• bleak
• forlorn
• cynical
• depressed
• heartbroken
• melancholy
• dark
• depressing
• accepting
• disconsolate
• sorrowful
• dejected
• miserable
• discouraged
• doleful
• gloomy
• crestfallen
• downcast
• woebegone
• heartsick
• dispirited
• weeping
• glum
• inconsolable
• joyless
• abject
• grieving
• sorry
• woeful
• blue
• wailing
• wretched
• brokenhearted
• hangdog
• disheartened
• saddened
• downhearted
• resigned
• low
• desolate
• cheerless
• dismal
• pessimistic
• dreary
• down
• heartsore
• low-spirited
• comfortless
• drear
• funereal

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• optimistic
• hopeful
• exultant
• ecstatic
• exuberant
• euphoric
• enraptured
• merry
• mirthful
• jovial
• jolly
• blithe
• gay
• elated
• exhilarated
• joyous
• joyful
• jubilant
• cheerful
• entranced
• lively
• encouraged
• happy
• jocund
• gleeful
• vivacious
• glad
• jaunty
• blithesome
• buoyant
• perky
• blissful
• cheery
• animated
• sprightly
• upbeat
• delighted
• lightsome
• sunny
• heartened
• chipper
• gladdened
• gladsome
• sprightful

despairing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of despair

as in grieving

to lose all hope or confidence

we despaired when we saw how little time we had left to complete our project

Synonyms & Similar Words

• grieving
• suffering
• mourning
• desponding
• hurting
• losing heart
• bleeding
• sorrowing
• surrendering
• discouraging
• darkening
• saddening
• disheartening
• yielding
• agonizing
• dispiriting
• giving up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• brightening
• rejoicing
• exulting
• cheering (up)
• encouraging
• reassuring
• assuring
• hoping
• perking (up)
• heartening

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective despairing differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of despairing are desperate, despondent, and hopeless. While all these words mean "having lost all or nearly all hope," despairing suggests the slipping away of all hope and often despondency.

despairing appeals for the return of the kidnapped child

When is it sensible to use desperate instead of despairing?

While the synonyms desperate and despairing are close in meaning, desperate implies despair that prompts reckless action or violence in the face of defeat or frustration.

one last desperate attempt to turn the tide of battle

When might despondent be a better fit than despairing?

While in some cases nearly identical to despairing, despondent implies a deep dejection arising from a conviction of the uselessness of further effort.

despondent about yet another rejection

Where would hopeless be a reasonable alternative to despairing?

The synonyms hopeless and despairing are sometimes interchangeable, but hopeless suggests despair and the cessation of effort or resistance and often implies acceptance or resignation.

the situation of the trapped miners is hopeless

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of despairing

Adjective

Irony doesn’t have to be nihilistic or despairing. — Aaron Matz, The New York Review of Books, 4 Apr. 2026

Rebin carries a despairing sense of hope in him, months later. — Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026

Verb

Those ‘boys’ are in their late forties and fifties now — a comforting reminder, to parents who may be despairing about enduring another entry in this franchise, that all children eventually grow up. — Caspar Salmon, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026

The book’s tone shifts from philosophical to playful to despairing to sensual, and on around again. — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 31 Dec. 2025