Wordwyrt

desperate

/ˈdespɹɪt/DEH-sprit
/ˈdɛspɹɪt/DEH-sprit

Meaningwithout hope

Common meaning: without hope

Other meanings: reckless

‘down, away, off’ + ‘to hope’ → desperate

Journey through time

  1. Latinspērō; spēs‘to hope’
  2. Frenchdespiz
  3. Englishdesperate‘without hope’ · today

de- also in: deterdecampdecidededucedefame

sper also in: despairprosper

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
  • No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
  • US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
  • No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin spērō; spēs ‘to hope; hope’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry spērō, p. 1740 · dictionary scan

Roots

Related words

despairprosper

Building blocks are an automatic split · open in app