dismalness


dis·mal

D0276200 (dĭz′məl)adj.1. Causing gloom or depression; dreary: dismal weather; took a dismal view of the economy.2. Characterized by ineptitude, dullness, or a lack of merit: a dismal book; a dismal performance on the cello.3. Obsolete Dreadful; disastrous.n. Chiefly South Atlantic US See pocosin.
[Middle English, unlucky days, unlucky, from Anglo-Norman, unlucky days, from Medieval Latin diēs malī : Latin diēs, pl. of diēs, day; see dyeu- in Indo-European roots + Latin malī, pl. of malus, evil; see mel- in Indo-European roots.]
dis′mal·ly adv.dis′mal·ness n.