What does despondence mean?
Despondence is a noun denoting a state of low spirits brought on by the loss of hope or courage — a deep, settled dejection rather than a fleeting sadness. A person in despondence has, in effect, stopped expecting things to improve. The word is formal and literary in register, appearing more often in written prose than in everyday conversation, and it is markedly less common than its close synonym despondency, with which it shares both meaning and origin. Typical usage pairs it with verbs of falling or sinking — one sinks into, or plunges into, despondence — reflecting how the state feels like a descent. Its connotations are weighty: unlike disappointment, which responds to a single setback, despondence suggests a prolonged loss of confidence in any favorable outcome. For writers seeking a dignified, slightly elevated term for despair short of clinical depression, despondence remains a precise and evocative choice.
nounA state of low spirits caused by loss of hope or courage; deep dejection or discouragement.
- A state of low spirits resulting from loss of hope or confidence; dejection.
"After months of rejected applications, she sank into a quiet despondence that even good news could not lift."
"The team's repeated defeats plunged its supporters into despondence."
"He spoke of his years of poverty without bitterness, but with a lingering note of despondence."
Almost never pluralized; despondence functions as an uncountable mass noun in standard usage.
"The letters chart his passage through successive despondences after each failure."
"Despondence" and "sponsor" come from the same Latin verb — one word sank into giving up hope, the other into promising to answer for someone else.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of despondence
Despondence derives from the Latin verb desponderе, meaning "to give up" or "to lose heart," formed from de- (indicating reversal or loss) plus spondere ("to promise" or "pledge oneself"). The same Latin root spondere also gave English words such as respond, sponsor, and spouse, all built on the idea of pledging or answering. Despondence entered English in the early modern period as a learned formation alongside despondency and despondent, and while all three survive, despondency became the dominant noun form.
Related word forms
How despondence is actually used
Despondence is a somewhat formal, literary word and considerably rarer than its synonym despondency; both are uncountable in ordinary use. It carries a stronger connotation of hopelessness than mere sadness or disappointment.
Easily confused with despondence
Despondency is the far more common noun for the same state of dejection; despondence is an older, less frequent variant with identical meaning.