Meaning

adjective without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success

adjective of a person unable to do something skillfully

adjective certain to fail

originEtymology tree Proto-West Germanic *tōhopōnder. Old English tōhopa Old English hopa Middle English hope English hope Proto-Indo-European *lewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der. Proto-Germanic *leusaną Proto-Germanic *lausaz Proto-Germanic *-lausaz Proto-West Germanic *-laus Old English -lēas Middle English -les English -less English hopeless From hope + -less. Compare Swedish hopplös.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0