as in hopeless
emphasizing or expecting the worst
a downbeat prediction for the company's sales performance in the upcoming year
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in downturn
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of downbeat
Chloe Taylor, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2024
The musical received mixed reviews from critics, with some, including Deadline and The New York Times, championing the work, but others emphasizing the downbeat nature of the story.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Dec. 2024
Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2024
Long periods go by where Fishman doesn’t hit the downbeat.
—Jordan Hoffman, Vulture, 12 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for downbeat 
Adjective
Amid a downbeat outlook, however, analysts say there could be some bright spots to watch for in 2025.
—Chloe Taylor, CNBC, 18 Dec. 2024
The musical received mixed reviews from critics, with some, including Deadline and The New York Times, championing the work, but others emphasizing the downbeat nature of the story.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Dec. 2024
Noun
The trio’s sixth record is charmingly irritable in both of its moods: hopped up on fluffy coffee while cracking baseball jokes, or dragging out downbeats and lamenting power structures to goad listeners with mounting anticipation.
—Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2024
Long periods go by where Fishman doesn’t hit the downbeat.
—Jordan Hoffman, Vulture, 12 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for downbeat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for downbeat
Adjective
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The battle between parents and tech-savvy children over access to the Internet and apps might seem hopeless.Daniel de Visé, USA TODAY, 26 Dec. 2024
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Burns is asked how to avoid feeling hopeless during a stretch like this.Dan Duggan, The Athletic, 16 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Advertisement The debate over the $1 billion project has played out amid a serious downturn in the region’s entertainment industry, with studios shifting film and television productions to Georgia, New Mexico and other out-of-state locations.David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2025
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The shift is notable because the major indices have overbought downturns that contrast with UBER’s oversold upturn.Katie Stockton, CNBC, 6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Coming-of-age teen comedies were never quite as wonderfully cynical before this movie about four teenage girls whose lives are upended by the arrival of a new kid, played by Christian Slater.Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 8 Jan. 2025
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Without any real prospect of serious concessions from Western states, the Taliban became cynical about ever gaining legitimacy on the world stage.Delaney Simon, Foreign Affairs, 2 Jan. 2025
Noun
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This is causing mortgage rates to push up against 8% and could lead to a slowdown in the housing market.JJ Kinahan, Forbes, 8 Jan. 2025
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Since meatpacking is highly labor-intensive, such disruptions would likely result in a slowdown in plant efficiency.Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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China remains the second biggest market outside of North America, and there were two Hollywood titles in the Top 10 in 2024 — Godzilla x Kong and Alien: Romulus (contrary to 2023 which had none) — but folks are pessimistic that Hollywood will ever return to the heyday of 2012-2019 there.Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 15 Jan. 2025
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Then there are the rankings that were right by being pessimistic, which isn’t as fun, but just as important.Eno Sarris, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
Noun
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On each downswing, a decomputation is performed, recovering the energy.IEEE Spectrum, IEEE Spectrum, 2 Jan. 2025
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Even amid its meteoric rise this year, bitcoin experienced a temporary downswing that slashed one-third of its value, Kenwell noted.Max Zahn, ABC News, 5 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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But beneath Pansy’s rage, often a source of that specific, bleak brand of Mike Leigh comedy, lies severe OCD, anxiety, depression, and the grief of having recently lost her mother.Radhika Seth, Vogue, 7 Jan. 2025
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While the art world has felt bleak amid a buckling market, a new art fair is gracing Los Angeles this year.Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 6 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Schmidt said 2024 will be the final year of stagnation, and sales this year will be enhanced by new products.Neil Winton, Forbes, 9 Jan. 2025
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Ray Major, economist NO: Hollywood faces a number of headwinds that will continue to impact revenue including creative stagnation, high production costs and shifts in consumer behavior.Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near downbeat
Cite this Entry
“Downbeat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/downbeat. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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