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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in disheartening
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
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 dispiriting
Jeffrey Seller, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025
One particularly dispiriting departure is that of Peter Marks, the longtime leader of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
One of the very depressing and dispiriting aspects of this is that Congress is not standing up for its prerogatives.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2025
The outcome ended what had been a dispiriting history for Maryland (25-7).
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 15 Mar. 2025
If blowout losses and dispiriting performances characterized the 2023-24 Sharks season, the team’s 2024-25 season has been pockmarked by heartbreak, with an almost uncanny ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2025
The lengthy injury report is really dispiriting, with Dallas also down Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II and midseason acquisition Caleb Martin.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025
Who better, then, to pry Eve loose than a rangy, rakish music journalist (Benjamin Bratt) whose game includes unironic hat-wearing and — like a dispiriting number of men in his age bracket — the unembarrassed deployment of Stephen Stills lyrics?
—Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025
The Vols look to avenge last month’s dispiriting loss in Knoxville; the Wildcats can earn a statement sweep of a respected team.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 11 Feb. 2025
Adjective
In this excerpt, adapted from Seller’s memoir, Theater Kid (out on May 6 from Simon & Schuster), the producer lays out the musical’s long road from dispiriting workshop to its simultaneously triumphant and tragic first preview performance.
—Jeffrey Seller, Vulture, 11 Apr. 2025
One particularly dispiriting departure is that of Peter Marks, the longtime leader of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.
—Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
One of the very depressing and dispiriting aspects of this is that Congress is not standing up for its prerogatives.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 20 Mar. 2025
The outcome ended what had been a dispiriting history for Maryland (25-7).
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 15 Mar. 2025
If blowout losses and dispiriting performances characterized the 2023-24 Sharks season, the team’s 2024-25 season has been pockmarked by heartbreak, with an almost uncanny ability to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
—Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 25 Feb. 2025
The lengthy injury report is really dispiriting, with Dallas also down Daniel Gafford, Dereck Lively II and midseason acquisition Caleb Martin.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 23 Feb. 2025
Who better, then, to pry Eve loose than a rangy, rakish music journalist (Benjamin Bratt) whose game includes unironic hat-wearing and — like a dispiriting number of men in his age bracket — the unembarrassed deployment of Stephen Stills lyrics?
—Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025
The Vols look to avenge last month’s dispiriting loss in Knoxville; the Wildcats can earn a statement sweep of a respected team.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, The Athletic, 11 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dispiriting
Verb
-
Actions by officials in the two countries are also discouraging Canadian tourists from looking south.—
Skyler Swisher,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 Apr. 2025
-
Good air circulation will allow leaves and stems to dry out, discouraging disease.—
Beth Botts,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
But the drum sound wasn’t nearly as dismaying as the studio’s piano, which kept slipping out of tune.—
Peter Ames Carlin,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
-
Data site Census Reporter whispers a hopeful, yet slightly dismaying, truth: over half of Austinites are unattached.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
Adjective
-
The many hours involved in pushing a mortgage across the finish line were daunting, the work tedious and dull, both for me and my clients.—
Michael Ashley,
Forbes.com,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Many are daunting, and perhaps more deserving of the city’s assistance.—
Mike Hendricks,
Kansas City Star,
12 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Her diet grew so troubling that a foster family admitted her to Four Winds Hospital in Saratoga, New York, for an eating disorder.—
Noelle Wiehe,
The Orlando Sentinel,
17 Aug. 2025
-
The Alaska meeting, which concluded without the Ukraine ceasefire Trump had promised, represents the latest chapter in a troubling pattern: the 45th and 47th president’s persistent confusion of stagecraft for statecraft.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
16 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
That is probably true – but only makes the current freefall more troublesome.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Florida’s wildlife commissioners set aside pleas and arguments from black bear advocates today and approved a December hunt of the state’s shy but increasingly troublesome species.—
Stephen Hudak,
The Orlando Sentinel,
13 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Their story was both deeply familiar and powerfully unsettling.—
Sam Wolson,
New Yorker,
7 Aug. 2025
-
The novel is unsettling but thrilling, and a classic work that has stood the test of time.—
Robert English,
EW.com,
30 July 2025
Adjective
-
Her dad, Taylor finds her art to be disturbing, but nonetheless harmless.—
DeVonne Goode,
Parents,
6 Aug. 2025
-
As a mother of two boys in public schools and the product of public schools myself, this news was disturbing to say the least.—
Andrea Campbell,
Time,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
For now, the backup offensive line remains a worrisome work in progress.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
3 Aug. 2025
-
First Steps easily stayed atop the domestic box office chart in its second weekend with $40 million, but tumbled a worrisome 66 percent.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dispiriting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dispiriting. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share