desperate

B1 Topic:Describing Qualities

Also spelled desprate

US /ˈdɛs.p(ə.)ɹət/ UK /ˈdɛs.p(ə.)ɹɪt/ See IPA manual

Freq #2287

Meanings

1

adj
Needing or wanting something so much that you will do anything to get it.

I hadn't eaten in two days and was desperate for food.
2

adj
Feeling that you have no hope and are ready to do anything.

He was so desperate that he borrowed money from a loan shark.
3

adj
Very serious, dangerous or almost hopeless.

The situation in the flooded town was desperate.

Thesaurus

Word family

Derived forms desperatelydesperatenessdesperationnondesperateoverdesperateundesperate

Related forms despair desperado

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

desperate cry
a cry expressing urgent need or hopelessness

Adjective + noun

Proverbs (2)

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Etymology

From Middle English desperat(e) (“desperate”), borrowed from Latin dēspērātus, perfect passive participle of dēspērō (“to be without hope”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix). The noun is derived from the adjective or from the Latin source through substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).

*speh₁- Proto-Indo-European desperat Middle English dēspērātus Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# desperate

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /ˈdɛs.p(ə.)ɹət/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈdɛs.p(ə.)ɹɪt/
**Frequency rank:** 2287

## Meanings
1. Needing or wanting something so much that you will do anything to get it.
2. Feeling that you have no hope and are ready to do anything.
3. Very serious, dangerous or almost hopeless.

## Examples
- I hadn't eaten in two days and was desperate for food.
- He was so desperate that he borrowed money from a loan shark.
- The situation in the flooded town was desperate.

## Derived Forms
- desperately
- desperateness
- desperation
- nondesperate
- overdesperate
- undesperate

## Related Forms
- despair
- desperado

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *speh₁-
- Root: desperat
- Root: dēspērātus

## Etymology
From Middle English desperat(e) (“desperate”), borrowed from Latin dēspērātus, perfect passive participle of dēspērō (“to be without hope”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix). The noun is derived from the adjective or from the Latin source through substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix).

## AI Etymology
desperate comes from Middle English desperat(e) (“desperate”), borrowed from Latin dēspērātus, perfect passive participle of dēspērō (“to be without hope”), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix). The noun is derived from the adjective or from the Latin source through substantivization, see -ate (noun-forming suffix). The historical chain includes Proto-Indo-European *speh₁-, Middle English desperat, Latin dēspērātus. Current senses include Needing or wanting something so much that you will do anything to get it and Feeling that you have no hope and are ready to do anything. English relatives and later formations include desperately, desperateness, desperation, despair, desperado.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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