Phrase guide

dismal science

noun · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

Economics or the field of political economy.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: derogatory, humorous, idiomatic, sometimes, usually, with-definite-article

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Coined by Thomas Carlyle in 1849, a play on gay science (“poetry”).