as in despair
the state of being discouraged
I tried desperately to avoid discouragement after failing the bar exam twice
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Recent Examples of discouragement
First, discouragement is not a good quality to base an investment decision on.
—
Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 July 2025
As the realities of relocating set in, his girlfriend’s enthusiasm quickly turned into doubt and discouragement.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 17 July 2025
This is because there’s a lot of woolly thinking out there, combined with apathy, distrust and discouragement.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
But Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling on gender-affirming care for transgender youth was the kind of attention many advocates didn’t want and the capper to a month of discouragement.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for discouragement
Jim Cramer, CNBC, 27 July 2025
As the realities of relocating set in, his girlfriend’s enthusiasm quickly turned into doubt and discouragement.
—Ashley Vega, People.com, 17 July 2025
This is because there’s a lot of woolly thinking out there, combined with apathy, distrust and discouragement.
—Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 23 June 2025
But Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling on gender-affirming care for transgender youth was the kind of attention many advocates didn’t want and the capper to a month of discouragement.
—Andy Rose, CNN Money, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for discouragement
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discouragement
Noun
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From the depths of despair, a reason to persist emerged and wheat flour surfaced.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Come for the downward spiral of hellish despair, stay for macabre goat Black Phillip and the ominous climax.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Unfortunate outcast kids Lilly (Clara Stack), Ronnie (Amanda Christine), Phil (Jack Molloy Legault) and Terry (Mikkal Karim Fidler) are at the center of the mysterious disappearances and the supernatural horrors, to their very poor luck and dismay of the adults in their lives.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
23 Oct. 2025
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Factory owners expressed their dismay on social media, noting that while workplace safety had improved significantly over the past decade, unregulated factories remained vulnerable.—
Mayu Saini,
Sourcing Journal,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Discouragement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discouragement. Accessed 26 Oct. 2025.
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