Synonyms of dispiriting

dispiriting 1 of 2

adjective

as in disheartening

Related Words

• disheartening
• discouraging
• dismaying
• demoralizing
• disconcerting
• daunting
• troubling
• troublesome
• unsettling
• distressing
• disturbing
• discomfiting
• disquieting
• worrisome
• upsetting
• perturbing
• frightening
• troublous
• nagging
• discomforting
• chilling
• scary
• alarming
• discomposing
• terrifying
• nasty
• terrible
• horrifying
• ghastly
• dreadful
• shocking
• horrible
• formidable
• persecutory
• dire
• frightful
• horrendous
• dread
• fearful
• forbidding
• fearsome
• harassing
• direful
• persecutive
• intimidating
• hair-raising

Dissimilar Words

• reassuring
• settling
• soothing
• calming
• comforting
• narcotic
• relaxing
• dreamy
• inviting
• sedative
• quieting
• tranquilizing
• consoling
• lulling
• pacifying

dispiriting

2 of 2

verb

present participle of dispirit

as in discouraging

to lessen the courage or confidence of

dispirited by the overwhelming amount of information needed to write the report

Synonyms & Similar Words

• discouraging
• frustrating
• disheartening
• daunting
• unnerving
• demoralizing
• frightening
• dismaying
• intimidating
• horrifying
• troubling
• chilling
• distressing
• worrying
• afflicting
• unmanning
• scaring
• bothering
• depressing
• throwing cold water on
• bullying
• saddening
• weighing
• trying
• debilitating
• browbeating
• undermining
• deadening
• cowing
• weakening
• vexing
• dampening
• enfeebling
• irking
• damping

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• encouraging
• cheering
• invigorating
• heartening
• enlivening
• reinforcing
• enforcing
• nerving
• exciting
• emboldening
• animating
• strengthening
• reassuring
• steeling
• assuring
• gladdening
• stimulating
• fortifying
• stirring
• inspiring
• energizing
• buoying (up)
• provoking
• galvanizing
• lifting
• rallying
• quickening
• boosting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of dispiriting

Adjective

That said, the more dispiriting possibility is that Gluck as a creator has gradually become too insulated from the industry’s rougher edges to recognize that his work makes an impact regardless of his intentions. — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2026

The second explanation is less technical but more dispiriting. — John Romano, The Orlando Sentinel, 4 Aug. 2026

Coming home to Cleveland James’ four years in Miami featured two championships sandwiched between two dispiriting losses in the NBA Finals. — Mark Selig, New York Times, 23 July 2026

The exits of the two men, who both identify as gay, will also mark a dispiriting step backward for LGBTQ+ representation in the C‑suite. — Phil Wahba, Fortune, 20 June 2026

And so that’s the dispiriting, disquieting aspect of the story. — Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 9 Apr. 2026

That opened the door for Ramon Laureano to deliver the knockout blow in the form of an RBI single to left, ultimately handing the Red Sox a dispiriting 3-2 loss. — Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 4 Apr. 2026

Uddin said there are challenges to operating a food pantry at a high volume, but none more dispiriting than having to say no. — Zareen Syed, Chicago Tribune, 13 Mar. 2026

Some might take issue that actual recordings get used, but given the message this expertly made film so emphatically presents, that haunting voice makes the film all that more powerful, meaningful and dispiriting. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2026

Verb

Haina job seeker on hiatus Coda says his mental health during his job search, while dispiriting, was less affected by the tepid responses because his family had been saving aggressively. — Sarah Jackson jennifer Liu, CNBC, 2 Aug. 2026

There were fires to put out; an unbalanced squad, unsettled players, grumpy fans, some truly dispiriting defeats. — George Caulkin, New York Times, 30 July 2026

The primary is also dispiriting for some longtime residents, who watched both Bush and Bell rise as figures in the Black Lives Matter movement. — ABC News, 26 July 2026

And yet for God’s sake, just look at the man—at his dispiriting attempts at humor, his weirdly off-putting outfits, his incessant posting of banalities and faux profundities and extreme-right disinformation on social media. — Mark O’Connell, The New York Review of Books, 4 July 2026

Tess, meanwhile, suggests a more vulnerable reality behind that brittle exterior—a faith that talent and perseverance can pay off, a desire for agency amid dispiriting circumstances. — Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 15 June 2026

After a long international flight, the lines at passport control and immigration can be dispiriting. — Michael Cappetta, Travel + Leisure, 13 June 2026

That dispiriting news, coupled with consumer sentiment plunging to the lowest point ever recorded, should be enough to set off alarm bells and trigger talk of the economy flirting with recession. — Greg Petro, Forbes.com, 19 May 2026

After a honeymoon research period, Schlamminger at times found the work dispiriting. — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 7 May 2026