- the state of being desperate
- recklessness resulting from despair
Origin of desperation
Middle English desperacioun from Classical Latin desperatio
noun
Desperation is defined as a loss of hope, or a great need that can make you act irrationally.
When you are absolutely starving and you steal a loaf of bread because you are feeling so hungry, this is an example of acting out of desperation.
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desperation
Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fifth Edition Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"Desperation." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation.
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Desperation. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation
desperation
noun
- The condition of being desperate.
- Recklessness arising from despair.
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, FIFTH EDITION by the Editors of the American Heritage Dictionaries. Copyright © 2016, 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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"Desperation." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation.
APA Style
Desperation. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation
Noun
(countable and uncountable, plural desperations)
- The act of despairing or becoming desperate; a giving up of hope.
- A state of despair, or utter hopeless; abandonment of hope; extreme recklessness; reckless fury.
Origin
From Middle French desperation, from Latin desperatio.
English Wiktionary. Available under CC-BY-SA license.
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Cite this page
MLA Style
"Desperation." YourDictionary. LoveToKnow. www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation.
APA Style
Desperation. (n.d.). In YourDictionary. Retrieved from https://www.yourdictionary.com/Desperation
Sentence Examples
- The desperation in her voice drew his attention.
- In desperation, I turned on the tape recorder which had run to its end.
- Desperation crept over her.
- He heard the edge of desperation in her voice.
- Claire screamed again, batting at him in desperation to escape.
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