ˌdespəˈrāshən noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English desperacioun, from Middle French or Latin; Middle French desperation, from Latin desperation-, desperatio, from desperatus + -ion, -io -ion
1. : the quality or state of being desperate
disillusionment and disgust may become desperation — Times Literary Supplement
: a loss or abandonment of hope and surrender to misery or dread
he shivered with fear and with cold, and a desperation began to possess him — Farley Mowat
also : a strong urgency
the very desperation of this dire need for some glimpse into that darkness which is the future — F.L.Mott
2. : adoption of a last resource : a seizing on any action or means that offer any hope of success regardless of consequences : extreme recklessness
with all the desperation of a fox caught by wire netting in a fowl run — J.C.Powys
she had had the courage of desperation , and that had saved her from failure — Ellen Glasgow