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Desparate or desperate?

Did you mean desperate? Here's the right spelling and how to remember it.

Incorrect

desparate

Correct

desperate

Letter by letter
CorrectWrong

Correct spelling: desperate. Misspelling: desparate.

letters the misspelling gets wrong or leaves out letters that shouldn't be there

Memory tip

There is an E after the P: des-PER-ate.

Why people write “desparate”

The misspelling “desparate” is only one letter off: it writes A where desperate has E, an easy slip because in an unstressed syllable both vowels can sound like the same soft "uh".

Spell-checkers catch the mistake in a document, but not in a handwritten note, a text message or a word game. Writing the word out a few times while saying the tricky part aloud is the quickest way to make desperate automatic.

Other misspellings of “desperate”

People also write “desprate”. Here is where each one goes wrong.

“desprate”

Letter by letter
CorrectWrong

Correct spelling: desperate. Misspelling: desprate.

letters the misspelling gets wrong or leaves out letters that shouldn't be there

The misspelling “desprate” is only one letter off: it leaves out the E.

What does “desperate” mean?

desperate noun

  1. a person who is frightened and in need of help

    “they prey on the hopes of the desperate”

desperate adjective

  1. arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope

    “a despairing view of the world situation”

    Synonyms:despairing

  2. desperately determined

    “do-or-die revolutionaries”

  3. (of persons) dangerously reckless or violent as from urgency or despair

    “a desperate criminal”

  4. showing extreme courage; especially of actions courageously undertaken in desperation as a last resort

    “made a last desperate attempt to reach the climber”

    Synonyms:heroic

Definitions from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Full dictionary entry

“Desperate” in a sentence

  • They made a desperate attempt to escape.
  • They prey on the hopes of the desperate.
  • A despairing view of the world situation.
  • Do-or-die revolutionaries.

Is “desperate” a playable word?

d 2e 1s 1p 3e 1r 1a 1t 1e 1

12 points in Scrabble · 13 in Words With Friends

  • Scrabble (US)
  • Scrabble (UK)
  • Words With Friends

“desparate” is not accepted in any of these games. See every word you can make from DESPERATE.

Desperate: quick answers

Is it desparate or desperate?
The correct spelling is desperate. “desparate” is a misspelling: it does not appear in standard dictionaries or in the Scrabble and Words With Friends word lists. “desprate” is wrong too.
How can I remember how to spell desperate?
There is an E after the P: des-PER-ate.
What does desperate mean?
Desperate means: a person who is frightened and in need of help.