Désespérer

Désespérer is a French verb meaning to lose all hope, to give up hope, or to drive someone to despair. It can be used transitively, as in causing another person to despair, or intransitively with a reflexive form se désespérer, to express oneself becoming overwhelmed by despair. It is common in everyday language as well as in literature.

Etymology and related forms: the word comes from Old French desespérer, formed with the prefix des- added to espérer (to hope), which itself derives from Latin sperare. The noun désespoir denotes despair, while the adjective désespéré (and its feminine désespérée) describes someone who is in a state of despair or something that is extremely hopeless. The adverb désespérément means profoundly or hopelessly.

Grammatical notes: désespérer is a regular -er verb in its conjugation. The present tense forms follow the standard pattern for -er verbs: je désespère, tu désespères, il désespère, nous désespérons, vous désespérez, ils désespèrent. The past participle is désespéré. The reflexive form se désespérer is used to express personal despair, with constructions such as se désespérer de quelque chose (to despair of something).

Usage examples: Cela me désespère. Cette situation me désespère. Elle se désespère de ne pas trouver de travail. Il a été désespéré par la nouvelle. The verb is often replaced by perdre espoir or être en désespoir, depending on nuance.

See also: espérer, désespoir, désespéré.