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WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2024hope•less /ˈhoʊplɪs/USA pronunciation adj. - without hope or beyond help:a hopeless situation.
despairing:I felt hopeless when I saw how slim my chances were.useless; inept:He's hopeless at the computer. hope•less•ly, adv. hope•less•ness, n. [uncountable] WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2024hope•less (hōp′lis),USA pronunciation adj. - providing no hope;
beyond optimism or hope; desperate:a hopeless case of cancer. - without hope;
despairing:hopeless grief. - impossible to accomplish, solve, resolve, etc.:Balancing my budget is hopeless.
- not able to learn or act, perform, or work as desired;
inadequate for the purpose:As a bridge player, you're hopeless. hope′less•ly, adv. hope′less•ness, n. - 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged irremediable, remediless, incurable.
- 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged forlorn, disconsolate, dejected. Hopeless, despairing, despondent, desperate all describe an absence of hope. Hopeless is used of a feeling of futility and passive abandonment of oneself to fate:Hopeless and grim, he still clung to the cliff.Despairing refers to the loss of hope in regard to a particular situation, whether important or trivial; it suggests an intellectual judgment concerning probabilities:despairing of victory; despairing of finding his gloves.Despondent always suggests melancholy and depression; it refers to an emotional state rather than to an intellectual judgment:Despondent over ill health, he killed himself. She became despondent and suspicious.Desperate conveys a suggestion of recklessness resulting from loss of hope:As the time grew shorter, he became desperate.It may also refer to something arising from extreme need or danger:a desperate remedy; a desperate situation.Despairing and despondent may apply only to feelings.
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