[syn: dismay, alarm, appal, appall, horrify]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Dismay \Dis*may"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dismayed; p. pr. & vb.
n. Dismaying.] [OE. desmaien, dismaien, OF. esmaier; pref.
es- (L. ex) + OHG. magan to be strong or able; akin to E.
may. In English the pref. es- was changed to dis- (L. dis-).
See May, v. i.]
1. To disable with alarm or apprehensions; to depress the
spirits or courage of; to deprive or firmness and energy
through fear; to daunt; to appall; to terrify.
[1913 Webster]
Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed. --Josh. i.
9.
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What words be these? What fears do you dismay?
--Fairfax.
[1913 Webster]
2. To render lifeless; to subdue; to disquiet. [Obs.]
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Do not dismay yourself for this. --Spenser.
Syn: To terrify; fright; affright; frighten; appall; daunt;
dishearthen; dispirit; discourage; deject; depress. --
To Dismay, Daunt, Appall. Dismay denotes a state
of deep and gloomy apprehension. To daunt supposes
something more sudden and startling. To appall is the
strongest term, implying a sense of terror which
overwhelms the faculties.
[1913 Webster]
So flies a herd of beeves, that hear, dismayed,
The lions roaring through the midnight shade.
--Pope.
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Jove got such heroes as my sire, whose soul
No fear could daunt, nor earth nor hell control.
--Pope.
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Now the last ruin the whole host appalls;
Now Greece has trembled in her wooden walls.
--Pope.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Dismay \Dis*may"\, v. i.
To take dismay or fright; to be filled with dismay. [Obs.]
--Shak.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Dismay \Dis*may"\, n. [Cf. OF. esmai, F. ['e]moi. See Dismay,
v. t.]
1. Loss of courage and firmness through fear; overwhelming
and disabling terror; a sinking of the spirits;
consternation.
[1913 Webster]
I . . . can not think of such a battle without
dismay. --Macaulay.
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Thou with a tiger spring dost leap upon thy prey,
And tear his helpless breast, o'erwhelmed with wild
dismay. --Mrs.
Barbauld.
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2. Condition fitted to dismay; ruin. --Spenser.
Syn: Dejection; discouragement; depression; fear; fright;
terror; apprehension; alarm; affright.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
dismay
n 1: the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles [syn:
discouragement, disheartenment, dismay]
2: fear resulting from the awareness of danger [syn: alarm,
dismay, consternation]
v 1: lower someone's spirits; make downhearted; "These news
depressed her"; "The bad state of her child's health
demoralizes her" [syn: depress, deject, cast down,
get down, dismay, dispirit, demoralize,
demoralise] [ant: elate, intoxicate, lift up, pick
up, uplift]
2: fill with apprehension or alarm; cause to be unpleasantly
surprised; "I was horrified at the thought of being late for
my interview"; "The news of the executions horrified us"
[syn: dismay, alarm, appal, appall, horrify]
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:
76 Moby Thesaurus words for "dismay":
abash, abject fear, affright, agitate, agitation, alarm, anxiety,
appall, apprehension, astound, awe, bewilder, blue funk, bother,
cold feet, confound, consternation, cow, cowardice, daunt,
discomfit, discomfort, discompose, disconcert, discourage,
dishearten, disquiet, distress, dread, dumbfound, embarrass, faze,
fear, flummox, flurry, fluster, fright, frighten, funk, grieve,
horrification, horrify, horror, intimidate, lament, moider, mourn,
mystify, nonplus, pain, panic, panic fear, perplex, perturb,
petrify, phobia, pother, put off, put out, puzzle, rattle, scare,
shake, shock, sorrow, stampede, startle, take aback, terrify,
terror, trepidation, unhinge, unholy dread, unnerve, unsettle,
upset