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Definitions

in the soup

ADJECTIVE
despairing
Synonyms
STRONGEST
grief-stricken melancholic melancholy pessimistic suicidal
STRONG
blue dejected depressed oppressed sunk
WEAK
anxious at end of one's rope brokenhearted can't win cynical desperate disconsolate downcast forlorn frantic hopeless in pain in the dumps in the pits inconsolable miserable no-win not a prayer sad shot down strabilious weighed down wretched
Antonyms
STRONG
cheerful encouraged happy joyous
WEAK
confident expectant hopeful
ADJECTIVE
desperate
Synonyms
STRONGEST
despondent forlorn futile sad vain
STRONG
downcast goner
WEAK
at end of one's rope back to the wall can't win dead duck despairing desponding gone hard up in the toilet inconsolable irrecoverable irremediable irretrievable no chance no-win running out of time sunk up against it up the creek useless wretched
Antonyms
STRONGEST
cheerful happy hopeful joyful
WEAK
calm confident content contented satisfactory satisfied secure unworried

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“It felt like what the moment called for. I was definitely in the soup already,” she says, writing songs for “Virgin” — “dropping all guard and being radically transparent,” as she puts it.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 2, 2025

The market may be "back in the soup on the banking crisis," said Chuck Carlson, chief executive officer at Horizon Investment Services.

From Reuters • May 3, 2023

Like salt, the lemon doesn't only lend its own flavor, it helps to embolden other flavors in the soup itself, amplifying all of the other ingredients to their best and brightest.

From Salon • Feb. 19, 2023

If left in the soup, the noodles will soak up the broth and become gummy.

From Washington Post • Jan. 11, 2023

For a second, he seemed to be looking at himself in the soup, looking for his ghostly reflection there.

From "Night" by Elie Wiesel