English dictionary
desperate
adjectivePronunciation
ˈdɛsp(ə)ɹət
Parts of speech
Definitions
adjective
- showing extreme courage; especially of actions courageously undertaken in desperation as a last resort
adjective
- fraught with extreme danger; nearly hopeless
adjective
- showing extreme urgency or intensity especially because of great need or desire
adjective
- arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
adjective
- desperately determined
adjective
- (of persons) dangerously reckless or violent as from urgency or despair
noun
- a person who is frightened and in need of help
Example sentences
made a last desperate attempt to reach the climber
{'source': 'G.C.Marshall', 'text': 'the desperate gallantry of our naval task forces marked the turning point in the Pacific war'}
they took heroic measures to save his life
a desperate illness
{'source': 'G.C.Marshall', 'text': 'on all fronts the Allies were in a desperate situation due to lack of materiel'}
a dire emergency
felt a desperate urge to confess
a desperate need for recognition
a despairing view of the world situation
the last despairing plea of the condemned criminal
a desperate cry for help
helpless and desperate — as if at the end of his tether
her desperate screams
do-or-die revolutionaries
a do-or-die conflict
a desperate criminal
taken hostage of desperate men
they prey on the hopes of the desperate