as in grieves
to lose all hope or confidence
we despaired when we saw how little time we had left to complete our project
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Recent Examples of despairs
When Eva suddenly disappears without a trace, the priest despairs, leading him to commit a series of shocking and violent crimes.
—
Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
Christopher Vourlias, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despairs
Verb
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In an emotional video posted Thursday, Kim thanked supporters for their prayers and asked for privacy as his family grieves.—
Emma Bussey,
FOXNews.com,
2 Jan. 2026
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Neytiri grieves the loss of her home and her tribe and resents Jake for it.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
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The fashion world mourns another great name.—
Francesco Martino,
Glamour,
19 Jan. 2026
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Family mourns relatives Three members of the same family — 72-year-old Mohamed Hamouda, his 15-year-old granddaughter and his daughter-in-law — were killed when 26-foot wall collapsed onto their tent in a coastal area along the Mediterranean shore of Gaza City, Shifa Hospital said.—
Wafaa Shurafa,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
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And if someone in your household suffers from allergies, such as dust mites, pollen, or mold spores, it’s recommended to have air ducts cleaned more regularly.—
Lauren David,
Southern Living,
8 Jan. 2026
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The economic state of the oil industry In terms of incentives, the oil industry currently suffers from a massive supply glut.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Time,
5 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Despairs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despairs. Accessed 22 Jan. 2026.
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