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desesperar

to despair

verb deh-ses-peh-RAHR Rare

Origin: Latin desperare (to be without hope)

Also means

to drive to despair

Usage Note

Desesperar is both transitive ('to exasperate someone') and intransitive/reflexive ('to lose hope'): me desespera la espera (the wait drives me mad) versus me desespero (I'm going out of my mind). The reflexive desesperarse is the more common everyday form for expressing personal despair or impatience.

Examples

"No te desesperes; ya llegará."

Natural Translation

Don't despair; it will come.

Literal Translation

Not yourself-despair; already will-arrive.

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