despondency

noun

di-ˈspän-dən-sē How to pronounce despondency (audio)
Definition of despondencynext
1
as in sadness
a state or spell of low spirits in despondency because he couldn't seem to settle into a lasting relationship

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2
as in despair
the state of being discouraged in their despondency they seemingly forgot that losing teams can become winning teams in a single season

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3
as in desperation
utter loss of hope never once gave into despondency and self-pity during her long recovery from her injuries in the car crash

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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 despondency Instead, a combination of internal disputes, instability around Alvaro Arbeloa’s position and the fact that several players are facing an uncertain future means the picture is one of discord and despondency. — Guillermo Rai, New York Times, 5 May 2026 At each meeting, trustees face outrage over the 1,000 pink slips issued to district staff and parent despondency over the closure of preschool programs and other services. — Jennah Pendleton, Sacbee.com, 23 Apr. 2026 But while some like Nazanin feel a despondency heading into the new year, for others, hope springs eternal. — Leila Gharagozlou, CNN Money, 20 Mar. 2026 There are delicate parallels in O’Halloran’s screenplay showing the different ways in which the Evans men deal with their despondencies. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026 See All Example Sentences for despondency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despondency
  1. sadness
  2. despair
  3. desperation
  4. depression
  5. dismay
  6. hopelessness
  7. melancholy
  8. sorrow
Noun
  • And that is what produces, for me, the anger and the rage and the sadness.
    — Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Fortuna noted rapid surveys also found that children with at least one immigrant parent are more likely to experience nightmares and higher levels of sadness.
    — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of sadness
Noun
  • Borisov’s brainy, tender, deeply contemplative performance lends an anchoring humanity to a film that might otherwise have curdled into sourness and despair — though there’s plenty of reason for that.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Ashley Flynn’s sister, Kayla Keyt, said during her victim statement that her family could not overcome their sense of shock and despair after learning that Flynn betrayed them in such a violent and horrible way.
    — Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC news, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of despair
Noun
  • Without the timeout, where New York could have advanced the ball to midcourt, Stewart missed a desperation shot at the buzzer.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Yet seemingly out of desperation, the nominees also have included total head-scratchers like Coldplay, Florence + the Machine, Matchbox Twenty, the Eagles — the fuckin’ Eagles, man!
    — Jem Aswad, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of desperation
Noun
  • The initiative’s goal is by 2030 to have empowered 3 million people to recognize the early signs of anxiety and depression, and take steps toward helping those.
    — Jennifer Weil, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • In addition to fentanyl, toxicology tests detected alprazolam, commonly known as Xanax; the muscle relaxant methocarbamol; and quetiapine, a medication primarily used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and, in some cases, depression.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of depression
Noun
  • And to my family’s dismay, more good books are being published every week.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Just like that, months of dismay — and his 0-for-3 start to the afternoon — were forgotten.
    — Gabriel Burns, AJC.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of dismay
Noun
  • According to 2025 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a third of youth have persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness — about 10% more than a decade earlier.
    — Darius Tahir, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Corruption across the political divide Much of this year’s fatigue traces back to a sense of hopelessness over systemic corruption, which ranks among voters’ biggest concerns, yet neither camp can claim the issue as its own, say experts.
    — Alessandra Freitas, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of hopelessness
Noun
  • The question for me is whether or not Lloyd will also manage to capture the melancholy of a deceptively serious play, notwithstanding its reputation.
    — Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
  • 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
Definition of melancholy
Noun
  • Because so many of Gunn’s friends died in San Francisco, a city where Gunn had found happiness and freedom, then these elegies are also a monument to a time of communal sorrow and mourning.
    — Colm Tóibín, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026
  • Another decision that those who are rejected face, at least if anger is mixed in with sorrow, is where to direct that anger.
    — George Loewenstein, Vogue, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of sorrow

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despondence
despondency
despondent
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Cite this Entry

“Despondency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despondency. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

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