despair

/dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/

//dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"despair" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“despair” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #9,319 in English word frequency and used as a verb.

#9,319
frequency rank, English
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
1
confusable pair

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

despair vs Desai
57% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for despair
PropertyValue
Headworddespair
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/
Letters7
Frequency rank#9,319
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “despair” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). despair lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for despair is 7 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/. Corpus data places it at rank #9,319 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for despair, with forms such as "ddespair", "depsair", and "desapir". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Desai", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English dispeir, from Anglo-Norman despeir and Old French desperer (from Latin dēspērō, dēspērāre), or desesperer, from des- (“dis-”) + esperer (“hope”). See also desperate. Displaced native Old English ormōdnes (“despair”) and Old English ortrī… The correct English form is despair, spelled D-E-S-P-A-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.
  2. 2
    To cause to despair.
  3. 3
    To be hopeless; to have no hope; to give up all hope or expectation.

Etymology

From Middle English dispeir, from Anglo-Norman despeir and Old French desperer (from Latin dēspērō, dēspērāre), or desesperer, from des- (“dis-”) + esperer (“hope”). See also desperate. Displaced native Old English ormōdnes (“despair”) and Old English ortrīewan (“to despair”).

This word in other languages

desesperarse(Español)désespérer(Français)verzweifeln(Deutsch)desesperar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ddespair,depsair,desapir,despairr,despari,despiar,desppair,desspair,dsepair,edspair

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of despair - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ddespair1depsair2desapir2despairr1despari2despiar2desppair1desspair1
Edit distance from "despair"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "despair"?
"despair" is spelled D-E-S-P-A-I-R. The IPA pronunciation is /dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/.
What does "despair" mean?
As a verb, "despair" means: To give up as beyond hope or expectation; to despair of.
What words are commonly confused with "despair"?
"despair" is commonly confused with "Desai". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "despair"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "despair" is /dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "despair"?
From Middle English dispeir, from Anglo-Norman despeir and Old French desperer (from Latin dēspērō, dēspērāre), or desesperer, from des- (“dis-”) + esperer (“hope”). See also desperate. Displaced native Old English ormōdnes (“despair”) and Old Eng... See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “despair”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is D-E-S-P-A-I-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /dɪˈspɛə(ɹ)/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Desai” - see the side-by-side comparison. despair vs Desai
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list