wanhope C2+ Topic:Emotions & Feelings US /ˈwɑn.hoʊp/ UK /ˈwɒn.həʊp/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun despair; the absence or failure of hope The defeated army sank into wanhope as winter closed in. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · despair; the absence or... despairhopelessnessdesperationdespondency ↔ Opposites hopeoptimismconfidence Word family Related forms wanhopewanton Etymology AI details From Middle English wanhope, a compound of the Old English privative prefix wan- ('lacking, deficient') and hope. wan- Old English hopa Old English View etymology graph -> Topics Emotions & Feelings External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # wanhope **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈwɑn.hoʊp/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈwɒn.həʊp/ ## Meanings 1. despair; the absence or failure of hope ## Examples - The defeated army sank into wanhope as winter closed in. ## Synonyms - despair - hopelessness - desperation - despondency ## Antonyms - hope - optimism - confidence ## Related Forms - wan - hope - wanton ## Roots and Affixes - Root: wan- - Root: hopa ## Etymology From Middle English wanhope, a compound of the Old English privative prefix wan- ('lacking, deficient') and hope. ## AI Etymology Wanhope comes from Middle English wanhope, a compound of the Old English privative prefix wan- ('lacking, deficient') and hope. In current use it is a noun meaning "despair; the absence or failure of hope". That sense is explained by the older material without requiring a speculative semantic step: the inherited or borrowed base supplies the field of meaning, while the English formation fixes its modern role. The older privative prefix wan- supplies the idea of lack or deficiency. The surface form is compositional: its joined elements remain visible in the modern word. The historical chain includes Old English wan- and Old English hopa. Related English forms include wan, hope, and wanton. As a result, the modern word is best read as a negative, privative, or reversative formation built on a historically older base. ## Topics - Emotions & Feelings markdown