Word.ws English Dictionary

desponding

desponding is the present participle and gerund of despond.

Meaning of despond

Verb

despond (third-person singular simple present desponds, present participle desponding, simple past and past participle desponded)

  1. (intransitive) To give up the will, courage, or spirit; to become dejected, lose heart.
    • Yet still despond not, but proceed
      Along the path where fate may lead.1867, John Conington, Aeneid, translation of original by Virgil, page 176

See all 2 meanings of despond

Adjective

desponding (comparative more desponding, superlative most desponding)

  1. That causes or communicates despondency; disheartening or despondent.
    • [T]he doubts, apprehensions, and desponding suspense which had accompanied her setting out, were now all removed, and certainty, ease, the expectation of happiness, and the cessation of all perplexity, had taken their place.1782, Frances Burney, Cecilia, V.x.1
    • "Somebody has hooked off with your pie," he blurted in a desponding tone.1869, Emily Thompson, Kingswood; or, the Harker Family Second thousand, page 67

Noun

desponding (plural despondings)

  1. A feeling or expression of despondency.
    • These are the despondings of men without money; but let the shining ore chink in the pocket, and folly turns to wisdom.1753, Edward Moore, The Gamester

Forms of desponding

Adjective
comparativemore desponding
superlativemost desponding
Noun
pluraldespondings

Words formed from desponding

Questions about desponding

What does desponding mean?
Desponding means that causes or communicates despondency; disheartening or despondent.
What is desponding the present participle and gerund of?
Desponding is the present participle and gerund of despond.
What part of speech is desponding?
Desponding can be an adjective or a noun.

Words near desponding in the dictionary

  1. despondently
  2. desponder
  3. desponders
  4. despondest
  5. despondeth
  6. desponding
  7. despondingly
  8. despondings
  9. desponds
  10. desponsage
  11. desponsate

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: desponding (page history and authors); despond (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “desponding.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/desponding. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.