discouragement

/dɪsˈkʌrɪdʒmənt/ (bre, ipa) · /dɪsˈkɜːrɪdʒmənt/ (ame, ipa) · /di-ˈskər-ij-mənt -ˈkə-rij-/ (ame, mw)

discouragement — noun

  • discouragementsingular
  • discouragementsplural

1. a sad, disappointed feeling that comes when you believe you cannot succeed at so

1.名詞B2
釋義

a sad, disappointed feeling that comes when you believe you cannot succeed at something, especially after repeated problems or failures

例句

After failing the driving test three times, Mei-Lin felt a deep sense of discouragement.

feel a deep sense of discouragement

Kwame shook his head in discouragement when the project he had worked on for months was cancelled.

in discouragement — describes how someone reacts

同義詞
  • despair

    stronger and more extreme; suggests complete loss of hope rather than temporary disappointment

  • dismay

    a feeling of shock and worry caused by something unexpected and unpleasant

  • hopelessness

    the belief that nothing will improve; more permanent in tone than discouragement

  • dejection

    a more formal term for a sad, low mood, often with a physical sense of being 'down'

反義詞
  • encouragement

    the positive opposite; support and hope given to someone

  • optimism

    a general tendency to expect good outcomes, not limited to a specific setback

文法句型

feel discouragement

in discouragement

a feeling of discouragement

用法筆記

This sense is uncountable and refers to the internal emotional state. For a specific thing that causes this feeling, use sense 3 (countable).

常見錯誤

❌I have a discouragement about the exam.
✅I feel discouragement about the exam.
💡'discouragement' in this sense is uncountable and is typically used with 'feel' or 'fill with', not 'have a'.

2. any act of speaking or setting rules that aims to keep a person from going ahead

2.名詞B2
釋義

any act of speaking or setting rules that aims to keep a person from going ahead with something or to lower the likelihood that an event takes place

例句

The school's discouragement of phone use during class included locking devices in a cabinet.

discouragement of [something]

The discouragement of cheating during exams was clearly stated on the first page of the test booklet.

同義詞
  • deterrence

    stronger and more official; implies fear of consequences rather than mere advice

  • dissuasion

    formal and less common; specifically the act of persuading someone not to do something

  • prevention

    broader term; stopping something before it happens, not necessarily through persuasion

反義詞
  • encouragement

    giving someone support, approval, or confidence to do something

  • promotion

    actively supporting or advertising something to make it more popular

文法句型

discouragement of [something]

act of discouragement

用法筆記

Often used in formal or official contexts (government policies, workplace rules). In everyday conversation, 'discouraging someone from doing something' or 'trying to stop someone' is more natural.

常見錯誤

❌The discouragement of my parents made me sad.' (ambiguous — could mean sense 1 or 2).
✅My parents discouraged me from going.' (use the verb form for clarity).
❌The discouragement of stealing.
✅The discouragement of theft.
💡'discouragement of' is followed by a noun or gerund; 'of stealing' sounds unnatural because 'discouragement' already suggests stopping an action.

3. something that makes a person less willing to continue an activity, because it f

3.名詞B2
釋義

something that makes a person less willing to continue an activity, because it feels too difficult, costly, or unrewarding

例句

The high tuition fee was a major discouragement to students from low-income families.

be a discouragement to [someone]

For Haruki, the lack of a nearby library was a discouragement from reading more often.

同義詞
  • setback

    something that delays or reverses progress; more specific than discouragement

  • deterrent

    something that makes someone decide not to do something, often through fear of consequences

  • hindrance

    something that slows down progress without necessarily stopping it entirely

反義詞
  • incentive

    something that motivates or encourages someone to take action

  • motivation

    the general drive or reason to do something

文法句型

be a discouragement to [someone]

prove a discouragement

用法筆記

This sense is countable — you can refer to 'a discouragement' or 'many discouragements'. It describes the thing that causes the feeling, not the feeling itself (see sense 1 for the emotional state).

常見錯誤

❌The bad weather was a discouragement for my mood.
✅The bad weather was a discouragement to going outside.
💡'discouragement' refers to something that makes you less willing to act, not something that simply makes you sad.