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dismay
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
dismay
I.noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
give/let out a yelp of pain/dismay/surprise etc
▪ The water was hotter than she had expected, and she gave an involuntary yelp.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ VERB
express
▪ The five main party leaders contesting the general election united to express dismay at the breakdown of the Gatt negotiations.
▪ Some of them express dismay, others celebrate, but all are astonished.
▪ The report says that most respondents expressed shock and dismay over racist incidents on campus.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
throw up your hands (in horror/dismay etc)
▪ But instead of throwing up her hands and blaming the problem on organizational chaos, she stepped back and analyzed the situation.
▪ Davide had seen the priests, who had shrugged and thrown up their hands indolently at the laundress's problem.
▪ Even his most recent wife, Mercedes, had thrown up her hands.
▪ He rounded the bend nearest the building, and nearly dropped the branch for throwing up his hands in frustration.
▪ Here Abie threw up his hands at the ignorance of policemen.
▪ Jenny exclaimed to E.. Ames, throwing up her hands.
▪ Paul Reichmann threw up his hands in protest at the suggestion, but did not utter a sound.
▪ Then they throw up their hands, wondering why the benefits they have been pursuing never seem to accrue.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ And needs change overnight, as many executives and senior managers have found to their dismay in the past several years.
▪ And of course the moments of dismay and indecision were moments lost.
▪ Conscientious parents, and there were some, viewed the situation with dismay.
▪ Perhaps Lucy would have melted weakly into his bony arms had not an expression of dismay and incredulity come over his face.
▪ Round the table the faces expressed dismay, disbelief, doubt.
▪ She opened the case and looked with dismay at the flimsy green silk nightdress lying on top of the matching gown.
▪ Some of them express dismay, others celebrate, but all are astonished.
▪ With a jolt of self-knowledge Caroline registered the same feeling of dismay as at that cool withdrawal after their picnic.
II.verb
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ The President's policies have dismayed some conservative groups.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Also, I am dismayed by the polemics of some on the left.
▪ He was dismayed by the change in his old friend and could see the darkness in his soul warring with the light.
▪ Leonie hurried to greet them, surprised and dismayed by their return.
▪ Long fasts did not dismay her.
▪ When I was sufficiently unbundled to have a look around, though, I was instantly dismayed.
▪ With others he was dismayed by its stringent terms.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Dismay

Dismay \Dis*may"\, n. [Cf. OF. esmai, F. ['e]moi. See Dismay, v. t.]

  1. Loss of courage and firmness through fear; overwhelming and disabling terror; a sinking of the spirits; consternation.

    I . . . can not think of such a battle without dismay.
    --Macaulay.

    Thou with a tiger spring dost leap upon thy prey, And tear his helpless breast, o'erwhelmed with wild dismay.
    --Mrs. Barbauld.

  2. Condition fitted to dismay; ruin.
    --Spenser.

    Syn: Dejection; discouragement; depression; fear; fright; terror; apprehension; alarm; affright.

Dismay

Dismay \Dis*may"\, v. i. To take dismay or fright; to be filled with dismay. [Obs.]
--Shak.

Dismay

Dismay \Dis*may"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Dismayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Dismaying.] [OE. desmaien, dismaien, OF. esmaier; pref. es- (L. ex) + OHG. magan to be strong or able; akin to E. may. In English the pref. es- was changed to dis- (L. dis-). See May, v. i.]

  1. To disable with alarm or apprehensions; to depress the spirits or courage of; to deprive or firmness and energy through fear; to daunt; to appall; to terrify.

    Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed.
    --Josh. i. 9.

    What words be these? What fears do you dismay?
    --Fairfax.

  2. To render lifeless; to subdue; to disquiet. [Obs.]

    Do not dismay yourself for this.
    --Spenser.

    Syn: To terrify; fright; affright; frighten; appall; daunt; dishearthen; dispirit; discourage; deject; depress. -- To Dismay, Daunt, Appall. Dismay denotes a state of deep and gloomy apprehension. To daunt supposes something more sudden and startling. To appall is the strongest term, implying a sense of terror which overwhelms the faculties.

    So flies a herd of beeves, that hear, dismayed, The lions roaring through the midnight shade.
    --Pope.

    Jove got such heroes as my sire, whose soul No fear could daunt, nor earth nor hell control.
    --Pope.

    Now the last ruin the whole host appalls; Now Greece has trembled in her wooden walls.
    --Pope.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
dismay

late 13c., dismaien, from Old French *desmaier (attested only in past participle dismaye), from Latin de- intensive prefix + Old French esmaier "to trouble, disturb," from Vulgar Latin *exmagare "divest of power or ability" (source of Italian smagare "to weaken, dismay, discourage"), from ex- (see ex-) + Germanic stem *mag- "power, ability" (cognates: Old High German magen "to be powerful or able;" see may (v.)). Spanish desmayer "to be dispirited" is a loan word from Old French. Related: Dismayed; dismaying.

dismay

c.1300, from dismay (v.).

Wiktionary
dismay

n. 1 A sudden or complete loss of courage and firmness in the face of trouble or danger; overwhelming and disabling terror; a sinking of the spirits; consternation. 2 Condition fitted to dismay; ruin. vb. 1 To disable with alarm or apprehensions; to depress the spirits or courage of; to deprive of firmness and energy through fear; to daunt; to appall; to terrify. 2 To render lifeless; to subdue; to disquiet. 3 To take dismay or fright; to be filled with dismay.

WordNet
dismay

  1. n. the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles [syn: discouragement, disheartenment]

  2. fear resulting from the awareness of danger [syn: alarm, consternation]

  3. v. lower someone's spirits; make downhearted; "These news depressed her"; "The bad state of her child's health demoralizes her" [syn: depress, deject, cast down, get down, dispirit, demoralize, demoralise] [ant: elate]

  4. fill with apprehension or alarm; cause to be unpleasantly surprised; "I was horrified at the thought of being late for my interview"; "The news of the executions horrified us" [syn: alarm, appal, appall, horrify]

Usage examples of "dismay".

Versailles, expressed dismay that Adams understood nothing he said, but politely remarked that he hoped Adams would remain long enough in France to learn French perfectly.

Then, out of the blue and to his utter dismay, Adams was called on to make one last emergency trip to Holland, and in the worst possible season to cross the North Sea.

The General felt very bad about sending anyone down into the Danakil country it was hot here in Asmara, God alone knew what it would be like down there, and the General felt a pang of dismay that he had allowed Crespi to select anyone with such political influence as the Count.

Though somewhat dismayed to find his property located a score of leagues beyond that of his nearest white neighbor, the major was at the same time gratified to discover in that neighbor his old friend and comrade, William Johnson, through whose diplomacy the powerful Iroquois tribes of the Six Nations were allied to the English and kept at peace.

Philly, looking downward, tracing with a trembling finger the pattern of the beadwork on the ottoman before which she knelt, listened with an inward shiver of dismay and ecstasy.

The dismayed barbarians, on whatsoever side they cast their eyes, beheld, with despair, a wasted country, a deep and rapid stream, a victorious and implacable enemy.

As they drew near John saw with dismay that they were many of the same Pharisees and Sadducees who had tested the preacher at Bethabara, and the Nazarene in Jerusalem.

After numerous rounds of boilermakers and an equal number of arguments about the current baseball season, they were shocked and dismayed to see a couple of Army guys jauntily walk in.

Her soft cry of dismay alerted Stella, who seemed to be the only person besides Brenn left sober.

The fact that he limped deluded other bulls into thinking that here was an easy enemy, and in the first years he was often challenged, always to the dismay of those who did the challenging.

The fire lizards had cleared the bowl of meat, and Camo stared into its hollow, his face contorted by an expression of dismay.

When I came to look at my third basket, judge my dismay to find that it was addressed to the Cavaliere Aquamorta, at the Albergo del Sole.

Whether it was his cries, or the, to them, awful sound and effect of the pistol shot, or what, I know not, but the other priests halted, paralysed and dismayed, and before they could come on again Sorais had called out something, and we, together with the two Queens and most of the courtiers, were being surrounded with a wall of armed men.

The oglers drew back in dismay, some reaching for the pinkish crystals that all of them wore.

Now that their dismay was over, the Culdees surrounded the strangers with smiling faces.