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Where does the word "despair" come from? It comes from Latin desperare, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).
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Where does the word "despair" come from? It comes from Latin desperare, passing through Old French before entering English (1300s).
Despair’s story begins in Latin: desperare meant “to lose hope.” 'de-', without, plus 'sperare', to hope. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as desperer. Its past participle gave 'desperate'. It reached English by 1300s as despair. Used in medieval theology for a deadly sin. Today, despair means the complete loss of hope.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient desperare "to lose hope", 'de-', without, plus 'sperare', to hope.
- Stage 2 · Old French · medieval desperer "to despair", its past participle gave 'desperate'.
- Stage 3 · English · 1300s despair "loss of hope", used in medieval theology for a deadly sin.