Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
👀 Looking downward 😔 Sad or discouraged 🌬️ A mine air shaft
downcast

downcast

3 4.7
Feeling sad and without much hope
  • adjective
  • /ˈdaʊnˌkæst/
translation icon : desalentado
  • After hearing the bad news, he felt downcast and struggled to find motivation.
  • looked downcast
  • downcast face
  • downcast expression

Number one, when I'm downcast, when I'm low, when I feel like I don't feel like doing anything, he lifts my head.

Examples

  • I have often been downcast myself, but never in despair.

    The Diary of Anne Frank (1959)

  • Annie sounded weary and downcast, and he tried, without much success, to cheer her up.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • You should be happy, not downcast.

    Wide Sargasso Sea (2006)

  • "Finally, having found out that we had already lived in the wide world for half a century, he became downcast.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Then her features went from hopeful to downcast in an instant.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • Don't look so downcast, my boy.

    Barry Lyndon (1975)

  • Ramesh's eyes were downcast, his voice flat and without affect.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • The valet exited with a downcast expression.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Mark was downcast.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Downcast and needing distraction, he agreed to attend the games with Antigonus.

    Fiction book (1998)

Synonyms

depressed
vsdowncast
441 3.5

Feeling very sad and without hope

is a sad discouraged state that may be less clinical or lasting
low
vsdowncast
336 1.0

Feeling sad or without energy

is more about sadness tied to loss of hope and courage
blue
vsdowncast
205 2.1

Feeling sad or unhappy

is more specifically tied to hopelessness and deep discouragement
grim
vsdowncast
73 4.2

Sad and hopeless, making things seem very bad

is personal sadness and discouragement rather than an external bleakness
hopeless
vsdowncast
48 2.5

Feeling no hope about a situation or the future

is sad and discouraged but not always utterly without hope
gloomy
vsdowncast
29 2.5

Feeling sad and without much hope

is similar but emphasizes an active sense of despondency
down
vsdowncast
  • Informal
24 6.7

Feeling sad or unhappy

is similar but indicates a deeper, more hopeless feeling
glum
vsdowncast
23 4.1

Looking or feeling sad and quiet

is comparably sad but often with a clearer hopeless tone
despondent
vsdowncast
18 7.7

Feeling very sad and without hope about the future

is similar but slightly less intense in hopeless feeling
bummed
vsdowncast
  • Informal
16 7.5

Feeling sad or disappointed about something

is a more serious discouraged state with less hope
downbeat
vsdowncast
8 4.4

Feeling sad and not very hopeful

is similar but often feels more inwardly despondent and heavy
discouraged
vsdowncast
7 3.4

Feeling less confident and hopeful because of problems

is broader sadness often including an active sense of despondency
disheartened
vsdowncast
5 4.2

Feeling less hopeful and confident after a disappointment

is about feeling sad and hopeless more generally
dejected
vsdowncast
5 4.5

Feeling very sad and not hopeful

is similar but stresses a deeper feeling of hopelessness
dispirited
vsdowncast
5 5.4

Feeling sad and without hope

is sadder and includes a stronger sense of hopelessness
crestfallen
vsdowncast
5 7.5

Sad and disappointed because what you hoped for did not happen

is broader sadness and lack of hope beyond that specific cause
despairing
vsdowncast
4 4.6

Feeling very hopeless and sad

is sorrowful and discouraged but less extreme than full despair
demoralized
vsdowncast
2 5.2

Feeling sad and lacking confidence to keep trying

is general sadness with hopeless tone rather than loss of confidence
down in the mouth
vsdowncast
  • Informal
1 7.8

Feeling sad or unhappy

is like that but includes a stronger sense of hopelessness
downhearted
vsdowncast
1 4.1

Feeling sad and without much hope

is similar yet leans more toward loss of hope and despondency
chopfallen
vsdowncast
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Feeling sad and disappointed after bad news

is more general sadness and hopelessness not only after failure
low-spirited
vsdowncast
1 5.1

Feeling sad and without much energy

is similar but more focused on lack of hope and despondency
in low spirits
vsdowncast
3.9

Feeling sad and without energy

is more about sadness combined with a clear loss of hope
deflated
vsdowncast
4.6

Feeling less confident and hopeful after a disappointment

is broader sadness that often presents as deeper despondency

Antonyms

optimistic
426 3.2

Expecting good things to happen in the future

elated
11 4.0

Feeling very happy and excited because of good news or success

Compounds

downcast expression
1 4.2

A sad look that shows someone feels unhappy

How Sad

despondent
18 7.7
downcast
3 4.7
dejected
5 4.5
sad
∞ 1.0
unhappy
463 1.0

Surface Forms

downcast positive

Morphology

downcast = cast (semi-transparent) = down + cast

The emotional sense 'sad, discouraged' is a figurative extension from 'cast down' (dejected); related to the components but metaphorical. [Postprocessing: moved 'down' from base_words to prefix]

Etymology

The word downcast comes from down ('toward the ground') and cast ('to throw' or 'send'), originally meaning 'thrown down'. So to be downcast is to feel 'thrown down' in spirit, which is why it means sad or discouraged.