as in despair
utter loss of hope
during the famine her desperation drove her to do things she wouldn't have normally considered
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Recent Examples of desperation
That to me felt like a North Star way to articulate a desperation to get somewhere.
—
Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
So Lucy was studying for an appraiser’s license, sheer desperation.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
Surveillance pricing based on desperation or need also raises unique ethical questions.
—Aradhna Krishna, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2025
However, some workers take on these dangerous roles out of desperation, and, as experts tell Newsweek, the paycheck might not be enough to match the level of danger.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desperation
Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 17 Oct. 2025
So Lucy was studying for an appraiser’s license, sheer desperation.
—Literary Hub, 17 Oct. 2025
Surveillance pricing based on desperation or need also raises unique ethical questions.
—Aradhna Krishna, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2025
However, some workers take on these dangerous roles out of desperation, and, as experts tell Newsweek, the paycheck might not be enough to match the level of danger.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for desperation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for desperation
Noun
-
There is no faster poison than despair declared permanent.—
Mohammed R. Mhawish,
New Yorker,
14 Oct. 2025
-
The opening introduces her character aglow in red light, complemented by a narrated monologue, vaguely written but delivered as pure, possibly suicidal despair.—
J. Kim Murphy,
Variety,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
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But the sadness at seeing Nuno depart does not equate to an anti-Postecoglou sentiment.—
Paul Taylor,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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Any book that centers love, friendship, dependence, entwinement, with humor, grace, sadness, pathos, that has such immense warmth and care at the core, is the best kind of book to me.—
Emily Temple,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The film contrasts the picturesque Alpine scenery of Tyrol with the hopelessness and isolation of the people who live in this landscape involuntarily – rejected asylum seekers placed on top of the Bürglkopf mountain.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
16 Oct. 2025
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Strangers became friends and friends became family in a crowd that has felt anger, despair and hopelessness before finally feeling some happiness.—
Kara Fox,
CNN Money,
11 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Desperation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/desperation. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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