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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Recent Examples of despondency
This need not be a recipe for despondency.
—
Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Depression can take many forms: Some people experience it as emotional despondency, while others struggle with obsessive thoughts or a loss of pleasure.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 June 2025
Feelings of liberation and despondency clashed in Nguyen-Amigo’s chest like a head-on collision.
—Jonathan Horwitz, Oc Register, 20 June 2025
One of the most crowded events was that of Politico and CBS News, even as some of the network’s journalists are in a state of anxiety and even despondency over the potential for parent Paramount Global would settle Trump’s lawsuit over 60 Minutes‘ edits of a Kamala Harris interview.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 27 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for despondency
Hussein Agha, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
Depression can take many forms: Some people experience it as emotional despondency, while others struggle with obsessive thoughts or a loss of pleasure.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 June 2025
Feelings of liberation and despondency clashed in Nguyen-Amigo’s chest like a head-on collision.
—Jonathan Horwitz, Oc Register, 20 June 2025
One of the most crowded events was that of Politico and CBS News, even as some of the network’s journalists are in a state of anxiety and even despondency over the potential for parent Paramount Global would settle Trump’s lawsuit over 60 Minutes‘ edits of a Kamala Harris interview.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 27 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for despondency
Recent Examples of Synonyms for despondency
Noun
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Followers and fans of Tika online expressed their sadness in the comment section.—
Tabitha Parent,
PEOPLE,
5 Nov. 2025
-
And in the last days of August, laughter and pot would waft over the scene, happiness laced with sadness.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The marvel of this verse is in its vulnerability in expressing sorrow, lost love and despair—under the seams runs the pain.—
Amber McBride,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
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The resulting social ills of crime, disease, and despair were blamed not on the systems that produced them, but on the people who bore their weight.—
Fahad Zuberi,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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India lost its review in desperation to get Wolvaardt dismissed, and then gambled with Verma’s gentle off-breakers.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
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Under this scenario, irregular migration continues, driven by desperation abroad and labor demand at home.—
Jonathan Portes,
Time,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In adults, physical activity helps to prevent and manage health problems like cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes and reduces symptoms of depression and anxiety—while also enhancing brain health and overall wellbeing—according to the World Health Organization.—
Hannah Millington,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
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Specifically, the study found that the teens and young adults required medical care for common mental disorders like anxiety and depression, a physical health condition, injuries and poisoning, and other physical diseases.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Lamenting the state of life in a post-pandemic world, Peck offers an alternative to the dismay and disconnection of modernity with a dreamy, escapist country melody that offers to make like the title and simply float off into the distance.—
Stephen Daw,
Billboard,
31 Oct. 2025
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Consequently, the creeping dismay of Henry Hill’s tablemates is at least as significant as Ray Liotta’s rising panic and fear.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The 1986 film also included accounts by former conscripts who had been forced to participate in the Russian occupation of Afghanistan, making clear the hopelessness and brutality of the war, starkly contrasting with the Kremlin’s version of a war of progress and purpose.—
Will Tizard,
Variety,
2 Nov. 2025
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In a world fraught with real-life villains, political upheaval and a collective sense of hopelessness, fantasy steps in to inspire people to carry on, and that rings especially true for LGBTQ+ teens.—
Brittany Johnson,
PEOPLE,
2 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Coppola and production designer Ziering will explore their creative partnership, the aesthetic and emotional storytelling that defines Coppola’s visual universe — from the suburban melancholy of Palo Alto to the luminous complexity of The Last Showgirl.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
29 Oct. 2025
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Full of dread and melancholy, the Austrian import flips the creepy-kid script a bit by centering on two boys (Elias and Lukas Schwarz) who wonder whether their mom (Susanne Wuest), whose head is wrapped in bandages after facial surgery, is actually their mom. 38.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The marvel of this verse is in its vulnerability in expressing sorrow, lost love and despair—under the seams runs the pain.—
Amber McBride,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
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Among the recurrent themes are suicide, mysteriously intractable sorrow, and failed attempts at familial and romantic connection.—
Margaret Talbot,
New Yorker,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Despondency.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despondency. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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