Desperate describes feeling or showing a great need or desire for something, often because the situation is very bad. It can also describe actions that are very risky or extreme because someone feels they have no other choice.
From Latin "desperatus" meaning "without hope," from "desperare" (to despair). It entered English through Old French forms in the late Middle Ages.
Desperate originally meant "hopeless," and that sense still hides inside—people do desperate things when they feel there’s nothing left to lose. That’s why desperate actions are often bold, reckless, and sometimes brilliant.
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