to despair
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to despair
To completely lose hope or courage because a situation seems hopeless. You no longer know how things can continue and feel helpless.
Nach stundenlanger erfolgloser Suche begann er langsam zu verzweifeln.
After hours of searching unsuccessfully, he slowly began to despair.
The verb is made up of the prefix 'ver-' and the noun 'der Zweifel' (doubt). Here, the prefix 'ver-' intensifies the meaning and expresses that the doubts become so great that you lose hope.
Er spürte, wie die Zweifel ihn langsam zum Verzweifeln brachten.
He felt how the doubts were slowly driving him to despair.
The perfect tense of 'verzweifeln' (to despair) is always formed with 'sein' (to be), because it describes a change in an inner state. So it is 'ich bin verzweifelt' (I have despaired / I am desperate), not 'ich habe verzweifelt'.
Sie ist an der schwierigen Situation fast verzweifelt.
She almost despaired over the difficult situation.
When you want to name the reason for the despair, you use the preposition 'an' followed by the dative. You despair 'an' (over / because of) a person, a thing, or a situation.
Der Schüler verzweifelte an den komplizierten Hausaufgaben.
The student despaired over the complicated homework.
Common reasons people despair over are abstract things. Typical combinations are 'an einer Aufgabe verzweifeln' (to despair over a task), 'an der Bürokratie verzweifeln' (to despair over bureaucracy), or also 'an sich selbst verzweifeln' (to despair over oneself).
Viele Künstler verzweifeln manchmal an sich selbst und ihren Fähigkeiten.
Many artists sometimes despair over themselves and their abilities.
to hope
'hoffen' and 'verzweifeln' are opposites in their basic attitude. 'hoffen' means that despite uncertainty, you stay positive and believe in a good outcome. 'verzweifeln' means that you lose this hope or courage because a situation seems hopeless. With 'an etwas verzweifeln' (to despair over something), you name the specific reason, for example a difficult task. In short: someone who hopes still sees a possibility. Someone who despairs sees almost no way out anymore.
Nach dem Unterricht verzweifelt Tom fast an den schweren Matheaufgaben.
After class, Tom almost despairs over the difficult math problems.
Nach der Arbeit hofft sie noch auf einen freien Termin beim Arzt.
After work, she is still hoping for an available appointment with the doctor.