名詞 desperate:

1. a person who is frightened and in need of help

形容詞 desperate:

1. arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope
   同義詞：despairing
2. desperately determined
   同義詞：do-or-die
3. (of persons) dangerously reckless or violent as from urgency or despair
4. showing extreme courage; especially of actions courageously undertaken in desperation as a last resort
   同義詞：heroic
5. showing extreme urgency or intensity especially because of great need or desire
6. fraught with extreme danger; nearly hopeless
   同義詞：dire

1. If foreign aid dries up the situation will be desperate.
   倘若外援枯竭，形勢將極為嚴(yán)重。
2. He's desperate for a glass of water.
   他極想喝一杯水。
3. They invoked help in the desperate situation.
   他們在走投無路的情況下懇求援助。
4. He was rifling through her desk in a desperate search for the letter.
   他拼命在她的書桌里搜尋那封信。
5. The desperate look of hunger; a desperate cry for help.
   饑餓者臉上那絕望的樣子; 絕望的呼救聲

des.per.ate

adj.（形容詞）
Having lost all hope; despairing.
絕望的：失去全部希望的；絕望的
Marked by, arising from, or showing despair:
由絕望而引起的，顯示出絕望的：
例句：
the desperate look of hunger; a desperate cry for help.
饑餓者臉上那絕望的樣子；絕望的呼救聲

Reckless or violent because of despair:
鋌而走險(xiǎn)的：由于絕望而莽撞的，兇暴的：
例句：
a desperate criminal.
鋌而走險(xiǎn)的罪犯

Undertaken out of extreme urgency or as a last resort:
孤注一擲的：表現(xiàn)出最強(qiáng)烈的急切的情況的；奮力作最后一搏（以尋求獲救）的：
例句：
a desperate attempt to save the family business.
拯救家族事業(yè)的孤注一擲的嘗試

Nearly hopeless; critical:
幾乎沒有希望的；嚴(yán)重的，危險(xiǎn)的：
例句：
a desperate illness; a desperate situation.
絕癥；危險(xiǎn)境地

Suffering or driven by great need or distress:
急切的，極度渴望的：被強(qiáng)烈的需要或苦惱驅(qū)使的：
例句：
desperate for recognition.
急于得到承認(rèn)

Extremely intense:
特別強(qiáng)烈的：
例句：
felt a desperate urge to tell the truth.
感到一種強(qiáng)烈的沖動想要說出事實(shí)

來源：
Middle English desperat
中古英語 desperat
from Latin dôspôr3tus [past participle of] dôspôr3re [to despair] * see despair
源自 拉丁語 dôspôr3tus [] dôspôr3re的過去分詞 [絕望] *參見 despair

【引伸】
des.perately
adv.（副詞）
des.perateness
n.（名詞）