despair
Example Sentences
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See Examples For:
Henrietta can experience a sense of "despair and distress" during her luteal phase, including feeling as though she is useless or having "intense flashbacks to embarrassing or upsetting experiences".
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
His Peter fends off despair by insisting that he’s fine.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
“There’s been a dramatic rise in their likelihood of despair and of ill mental health. The viability of their American Dream is at stake.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 29, 2026
But remember, despair isn’t activism—it’s just another impediment to progress.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
Jonathan remembered his despair after he struck out with the bases loaded.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
When her TV show is canceled, the actress does what you might predict given the movie’s exaggerated look and tone: She despairs at what she sees in the mirror and reaches for an outrageous solution.
From New York Times ● May 24, 2024
Kakar despairs at the plight of Afghans who remain in Pakistan.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 28, 2024
Then Isabel’s despairs stack, pressing her to expand her inquiry beyond the United States and diagnose history’s gravest injuries.
From Salon ● Jan. 26, 2024
Now he despairs of the international community because it is not doing more to stop the fighting.
From BBC ● Jan. 7, 2024
He despairs of us, all of us, including the model, whose surreptitious gum chewing maddens him.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
But closer to the high-security perimeter, a crowd of worshippers despaired as police officers blocked their route.
From Barron's ● Jun. 7, 2026
They mourned the loss of entertainment industry jobs and despaired over homeless people living in squalor.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
The 28-year-old software engineer despaired of ever reaching America.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2025
You despaired because buying merchandise—both Fanatics’ own and products it retails—did not satiate your appetite to do e-commerce with this company.
From Slate ● Mar. 7, 2025
In the hospital, her father despaired at incompetences and breakdowns in procedures, at the rough, professional hands that prodded him.
From "Dreaming in Cuban" by Cristina García
That cruel realization haunts the cash-strapped protagonist of English filmmaker Mark Jenkin’s transfixing, increasingly despairing “Rose of Nevada.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
As wars multiply, Pope Leo’s aides aren’t despairing about the possibilities of diplomacy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 21, 2026
The angry, despairing look on team owner Lawrence Stroll's face in Bahrain said it all.
From BBC ● Mar. 3, 2026
But Nina soon found herself despairing, once she realized she could not leave her hiding place.
From Barron's ● Feb. 2, 2026
I was despairing over this latest failure, made worse by the fact that Rich seemed blind to it all.
From "The Joy Luck Club" by Amy Tan
Vocabulary lists containing despair
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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A Long Walk to Water
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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