dishearten
/dɪsˈhɑːt(ə)n
/verb [with object]
Cause (someone) to lose determination or confidence: the farmer was disheartened by the damage to his crops (as adjective disheartened) a disheartened tone of voice...
- We weren't disheartened to lose as it was a tough tournament.
- Some disturbing news regarding misuse and exploitation of the tsunami donations are cropping up which disheartens me a lot.
- I am so disheartened at the slurs and insults that have been hurled at those people who accept free lunch for their kids.
Synonyms
discourage, dispirit, demoralize, depress, dismay, daunt, deter, unman, unnerve, sap, shake, throw, crush, cast down, desolate, make dispirited, make dejected, make crestfallen, make downhearted, disappoint, sadden, weigh down, weigh heavily on, put a damper on, cow, subdue, undermine, enervate, weaken
informal give someone the blues, make someone fed up, knock the stuffing out of, knock for six, knock sideways
archaic deject
downhearted, dispirited, low-spirited, demoralized, despondent, depressed, disconsolate, dejected, dismayed, disappointed, daunted, discouraged, deterred, unmanned, unnerved, sapped, shaken, thrown, crushed, cast down, low, down, crestfallen, saddened, weighed down
informal blue, down in the mouth, down in the dumps
Derivatives
dishearteningly
/ adverb ...- It was a long, hard haul and the resultant catch, just a few kilos, seemed dishearteningly small.
- The main question I want to pose in the remainder of this essay is this: do these elements of the novel constitute a response to the private and public events that it so powerfully and dishearteningly presents in its central narrative?
- Sorin frowned and shook his head dishearteningly.
disheartenment
/ noun ...- It is with his warm, kind eyes more than his alert disposition or his physical resourcefulness that he conveys Clive's simultaneous disheartenment and delectation at encountering so denuded a piece of work.
- Call it the day-after blues: The initial excitement of securing a piece of land of their own can quickly be overshadowed by a feeling of disheartenment for some prospective home owners.
- When we're caught in disheartenment we really believe that we'll never be adequate, that we'll never fit in, that nothing will ever work out, and so on.