discontent

C2+ Topic:Emotions & Feelings

US /ˌdɪskənˈtɛnt/ UK /ˌdɪskənˈtɛnt/ See IPA manual

noun adj

Meanings

1

noun
a feeling of dissatisfaction or restless unhappiness

Widespread discontent over wages sparked the strike.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a feeling of... dissatisfaction displeasure unhappiness restlessnessdisgruntlementunrestmalaise

Opposites

contentment satisfaction happiness content

Word family

Forms discontentedness

Derived forms discontenteddiscontentment

Etymology

A 15th-century formation from dis- ('not') plus content; content is from Latin contentus ('satisfied'), past participle of continere ('to hold together, contain'), from com- ('together') plus tenere ('to hold').

dis- Latin contentus Latin tenere Latin *ten- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Emotions & Feelings Word Formation & Derivatives

# discontent

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun, adj
**IPA (US):** ˌdɪskənˈtɛnt
**IPA (UK):** ˌdɪskənˈtɛnt

## Meanings
1. a feeling of dissatisfaction or restless unhappiness

## Examples
- Widespread discontent over wages sparked the strike.

## Synonyms
- dissatisfaction
- displeasure
- unhappiness
- restlessness
- disgruntlement
- unrest
- malaise

## Antonyms
- contentment
- satisfaction
- happiness
- content

## Derived Forms
- discontented
- discontentment

## Related Forms
- content
- contentment

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: dis-
- Root: contentus
- Root: tenere
- Root: *ten-

## Etymology
A 15th-century formation from dis- ('not') plus content; content is from Latin contentus ('satisfied'), past participle of continere ('to hold together, contain'), from com- ('together') plus tenere ('to hold').

## AI Etymology
Discontent is a 15th-century formation from dis- ('not') plus content; content is from Latin contentus ('satisfied'), past participle of continere ('to hold together, contain'), from com- ('together') plus tenere ('to hold'). The ancestry passes through Latin dis-, Latin contentus, Latin tenere, and Proto-Indo-European *ten-. The prefix dis- often marks separation, reversal, or negation in Latin and English formations, helping to explain the word's surface structure. In present use as noun and adjective, it means "a feeling of dissatisfaction or restless unhappiness", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Related words include content and contentment; derived forms include discontented and discontentment.

## Topics
- Emotions & Feelings
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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discontent

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