dismay
Noun
- the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles
- fear resulting from the awareness of danger
- A sudden or complete loss of courage and firmness in the face of trouble or danger; overwhelming and disabling terror; a sinking of the spirits
- Condition fitted to dismay; ruin.
Verb
Verb Forms: dismayed, dismaying, dismays
- To cause consternation and distress; to fill with dread.
- lower someone's spirits; make downhearted
- fill with apprehension or alarm; cause to be unpleasantly surprised
- To cause to feel apprehension; great sadness, or fear; to deprive of energy
- To render lifeless; to subdue; to disquiet.
- To take dismay or fright; to be filled with dismay.
Examples
- He looked in dismay at the destruction of the town caused by the hurricane.
- The opponent’s unexpected bingo play filled him with dismay.
Origin / Etymology
From Middle English dismayen, from Anglo-Norman *desmaiier, alteration of Old French esmaier (“to frighten”), probably from Vulgar Latin *exmagare (“to deprive (someone) of strength, to disable”), from ex- + *magare (“to enable, empower”), from Proto-Germanic *maginą, *maganą (“might, power”), from Proto-Indo-European *megʰ- (“to be able”).
Akin to Old High German magan, megin (“power, might, main”), Old English mæġen (“might, main”), Old High German magan, mugan (“to be powerful, able”), Old English magan (“to be able”). Cognate with Portuguese desmaiar (“to faint”) and Spanish esmayar. See also Portuguese esmagar, Spanish amagar. More at main, may.
Synonyms
alarm, appal, appall, cast down, consternation, deject, demoralise, demoralize, depress, discouragement, disheartenment, dispirit, get down, horrify, daunt, terrify
Antonyms
Scrabble Score: 12
dismay: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Worddismay: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
dismay: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary