despond 1 of 2

noun

Definition of despondnext
1
as in sadness
a state or spell of low spirits he sank into a crushing despond after his wife left him

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in despair
utter loss of hope loss of his job threw him into a deep despond

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

despond

2 of 2

verb

di-ˈspänd How to pronounce despond (audio)
as in to despair
to lose all hope or confidence we must not despond even though we live in trying times

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of despond
Noun
Lonely and addicted to her social media feeds, Selena plunged into a deep despond and filmed her death-by-overdose on Snap. — Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 17 June 2024 The slough of Mardenborough's despond comes towards the end of the film when a crash at the Nürburgring results in the death of a spectator. — Elana Scherr, Car and Driver, 11 Aug. 2023 Animal spirits might buoy up markets again, or investors might sink back into the sort of despond that ended 2015, but sentiment currently offers little guide. — James MacKintosh, WSJ, 20 Dec. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despond
  1. sadness
  2. despair
  3. depression
  4. desperation
  5. melancholy
  6. sorrow
  7. gloom
  8. mournfulness
Noun
  • Despite being steeped in the sadness and frustration of the working class, Lee’s drama uses its film-within-a-film construct to refract the moral valences of labor through the prism of what people actually earn through their work.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 6 Sep. 2026
  • This one, however, finds the director in a mood to confront the inevitable changes and march of time, its joys and sadness in the lives of ordinary people going about living it.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of sadness
Noun
  • But comparisons aside, this is unmistakably a Lee Chang-dong film, its aching humanism reflecting the co-existence of despair and hope.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2026
  • From despair to salvation and then back again, the picture at the end of Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Manchester United was of flailing limbs, both on the touchline, as players mobbed late, late equaliser-scorer Ainsley Maitland-Niles, and in the stands.
    — Patrick Boyland, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of despair
Noun
  • Hollows haven’t been found elsewhere on planets in our solar system, and with no wind or water to form the thousands of puzzling depressions, scientists want to know what forces sculpted them.
    — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Symptoms include fever, depression, anorexia, vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration.
    — Amaia Gavica, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of depression
Noun
  • But his approach is from a position of deftness and strength, not desperation.
    — Hilary Milnes, Vogue, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The mood would be a mix of confidence, desperation and nagging dread.
    — Austin Meek, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of desperation
Noun
  • On the one hand, there’s a fascination with collective joy and the forms of vernacular invention that aspire to it; on the other, there’s an underlying melancholy that points to the inevitability of isolation, an epistemology of loneliness.
    — Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Beneath all the sensuality and beauty, there’s also a lingering melancholy that feels very familiar to me.
    — Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 16 June 2026
Definition of melancholy
Noun
  • Kenyan President William Ruto expressed sorrow on behalf of his government and people.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Sep. 2026
  • But as hours stretched into days with no word from them, his hope turned to sorrow.
    — Faith Karimi, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of sorrow
Noun
  • After a shambolic end to the transfer window on Tuesday night, more doom and gloom was descending on Hill Dickinson Stadium five days later when United’s Benjamin Sesko headed home what looked to be an 88th-minute winner.
    — Stuart James, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • There is a tendency for gloom to descend when thinking about Europe’s economic and business prospects.
    — Kamal Ahmed, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of gloom
Noun
  • Power Ballad should be breezy and fun, with that twist of mournfulness that Carney is always so adept at pulling off.
    — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 29 May 2026
Definition of mournfulness

Phrases Containing despond

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despoliations
despond
desponded
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Cite this Entry

“Despond.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despond. Accessed 10 Sep. 2026.

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