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Listless vs Discouraging - What's the difference?

listless | discouraging |

As adjectives the difference between listless and discouraging

is that listless is lacking energy, enthusiasm, or liveliness while discouraging is that causes discouragement.

As a verb discouraging is

.

As a noun discouraging is

discouragement.

listless

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Lacking energy, enthusiasm, or liveliness.
  • * 1818 , , Frankenstein , ch. 18:
    • I passed whole days on the lake alone in a little boat, watching the clouds and listening to the rippling of the waves, silent and listless .
  • * 1861 , , The Stokesley Secret , ch. 6:
    • What an entirely different set of beings were those Stokesley children in lesson-time. . . . Poor, listless , stolid, deplorable logs, with bowed backs and crossed ankles, pipy voices and heavy eyes!
  • * 1901 , , The Hero , ch. 21:
    • The scene with Mrs. Wallace had broken his spirit, and he was listless now, indifferent to what happened.
  • * 2005 Nov. 29, Aryn Baker, " John Hardy: Bali Guy," Time :
    • “Listless , inattentive, distracted,” he recited. “A daydreamer. Tries his best, but is too slow.”

    Derived terms

    * listlessly * listlessness

    Anagrams

    *

    discouraging

    English

    Verb

    (head)

    • Adjective

    (head)
  • that causes discouragement
  • * 1876 Brewster Higley - A Home on the Range
  • * Oh, give me a home where the Buffalo roam / Where the Deer and the Antelope play; / Where never is heard a discouraging word, / And the sky is not clouded all day

    • Synonyms

    * See also

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • discouragement
  • * Lydia Ann Barclay
    • But, alas! I fear the health of the better part is dwindling instead of increasing, through letting in the enemy's discouragings , and a want of feeling after the daily sap of life, whereby strength would be received to overcome all obstacles