Despond

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  despond \de*spond"\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Desponded}; p. pr. &
     vb. n. {Desponding}.] [L. despond[=e]re, desponsum, to
     promise away, promise in marriage, give up, to lose
     (courage); de- + spond[=e]re to promise solemnly. See
     {Sponsor}.]
     To give up the will, courage, or spirit; to be thoroughly


     disheartened; to lose all courage; to become dispirited or
     depressed; to take an unhopeful view.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           I should despair, or at least despond.   --Scott's
                                                    Letters.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           Others depress their own minds, [and] despond at the
           first difficulty.                        --Locke.
     [1913 Webster]
  
           We wish that . . . desponding patriotism may turn its
           eyes hitherward, and be assured that the foundations of
           our national power still stand strong.   --D. Webster.
  
     Syn: {Despond}, {Dispair}.
  
     Usage: Despair implies a total loss of hope, which despond
            does not, at least in every case; yet despondency is
            often more lasting than despair, or than desperation,
            which impels to violent action.
            [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Despond \De*spond"\ n.
     Despondency. [Obs.]
     [1913 Webster]
  
           The slough of despond.                   --Bunyan.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  despond
       v : lose confidence or hope; become dejected; "The supporters of
           the Presidential candidate desponded when they learned
           the early results of the election"

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  21 Moby Thesaurus words for "despond":
     abandon hope, become suicidal, brood, despair, despair of, droop,
     falter, give up, give up hope, give way, hit rock bottom, languish,
     lose heart, lose hope, plumb the depths, reach the depths, sag,
     sink, sink into despair, touch bottom, yield to despair