forlorn

4 definitions • 5 examples

alone and unhappy; left alone and not cared for:

She looked a forlorn figure standing at the bus stop.

A forlorn place feels empty and sad:

This forlorn industrial town has very high unemployment.

very unlikely to be achieved or to succeed:

forlorn hope Their only hope now is that the outside world will intervene but it is an increasingly forlorn hope.

forlorn attempt She appeared on daytime TV in a forlorn attempt to persuade the public of her innocence.

looking or feeling alone and sad because you need help but do not expect to get it:

As I left little Bobby on his first day of school, he gave me such a forlorn look.