Dispaired

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To be in a state characterized by a profound lack of hope and a sense of defeat
2. To feel overwhelmed by a sense of hopelessness and despair
3. Being deeply troubled by a lack of optimism or expectation for improvement

Etymology: "Dispaired" is the past tense and past participle of "dispair," an archaic verb that meant to lose hope or despair. Its parts are simple: the prefix "dis-", which reverses or removes, attached to "pair," the same root behind "despair." In other words, "dispair" amounts to a deliberate reversal of "pair" in its older sense of giving up hope, so the word is built as a plain compound rather than through any unusual sound change. Because "dispair" is an uncommon variant, the verb is best understood as a relative of "despair," and its spelling reflects the same prefixing pattern found in many English verbs formed from "dis-" plus a base. The inflected form "dispaired" therefore follows ordinary English conjugation for regular verbs, adding "-ed" to the base.

Synonyms: despaired, lost hope, gave up

Antonyms: hoped, believed, expected, anticipated