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dismal

adjective

dis·​mal ˈdiz-məl How to pronounce dismal (audio)
1
: showing or causing gloom (see gloom entry 2 sense 2) or depression
the dismal prison twilight Charles Dickens
2
: lacking merit : particularly bad
a dismal performance
3
obsolete : disastrous, dreadful
dismally
ˈdiz-mə-lē How to pronounce dismal (audio)
adverb
dismalness noun

Did you know?

The Evil History of Dismal

In late antiquity, certain days each month, called “Egyptian days,” were regarded as inauspicious, probably as a relic of ancient Egyptian belief. By the Middle Ages, people took them to be anniversaries of the Biblical plagues in Egypt. There were 24 such days per year, and in Anglo-French they were called collectively dismal (from Latin dies mali, “evil days”), and this word was borrowed into Middle English. In time the “evil days” sense was forgotten and dismal was simply taken to mean “disastrous.” The noun dismal, meaning “swamp,” goes back to the 1700s when the marshy region in Virginia and North Carolina was named the Great Dismal Swamp.

Synonyms

Choose the Right Synonym for dismal

dismal, dreary, bleak, gloomy, cheerless, desolate mean devoid of cheer or comfort.

dismal indicates extreme and utterly depressing gloominess.

dismal weather

dreary, often interchangeable with dismal, emphasizes discouragement resulting from sustained dullness or futility.

a dreary job

bleak suggests chill, dull, and barren characteristics that utterly dishearten.

the bleak years of the depression

gloomy often suggests lack of hope or promise.

gloomy war news

cheerless stresses absence of anything cheering.

a drab and cheerless office

desolate adds an element of utter remoteness or lack of human contact to any already disheartening aspect.

a desolate outpost

Example Sentences

The show was a dismal failure. The team's record is dismal.
Recent Examples on the Web Market analysts have highlighted Netflix gaming’s dismal adoption rates, as reported on by a third-party app analytics company. Shannon Liao, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2022 The minerals required for those batteries also present an ethical problem, as many are mined in areas with dismal human-rights records. Bjorn Lomborg, WSJ, 9 Sep. 2022 The Sox are 4-12 against the Rays this season, putting their record against American League East opponents at a dismal 18-39. Julian Mcwilliams, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Sep. 2022 However, the dismal working conditions, 12-hour shifts, low pay, and paltry benefits are negatively impacting production at the Wharton plant by leading to serious difficulties in hiring and retaining workers. Cesar Moreira, Fortune, 5 Sep. 2022 Removing a dismal August from the equation, domestic revenue for May through July was $2.9 billion, a downturn of just 16.6 percent from the same period in 2019 ($3.49 billion). Pamela Mcclintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Sep. 2022 The dismal tide of synthetic opioids and amphetamines has penetrated Fort Bragg’s high-security gates, permeated through to the lowliest privates’ barracks, and caused at least a dozen overdose deaths in just the last year. Seth Harp, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2022 Bo Nix made some dismal throws that will stick with Ducks fans, notably the two first-half interceptions that killed any hope of the Ducks hanging with the Bulldogs. Bill Oram, oregonlive, 4 Sep. 2022 Shares of Snap took a major tumble last month, after the company reported dismal sales growth and warned investors that the economy had worsened at a faster pace than expected. Catherine Thorbecke, CNN, 31 Aug. 2022 See More

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from dismal, noun, days marked as unlucky in medieval calendars, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin dies mali, literally, evil days

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Time Traveler
The first known use of dismal was in the 15th century

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