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dire

  [dahyuhr]
Use dire in a Sentence
–adjective, dir⋅er, dir⋅est.
1. causing or involving great fear or suffering; dreadful; terrible: a dire calamity.
2. indicating trouble, disaster, misfortune, or the like: dire predictions about the stock market.
3. urgent; desperate: in dire need of food.
Origin:
1560–70; < L dīrus fearful, unlucky

Related forms:
direly, adverb
direness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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dire   (dīr)   
adj.   dir·er, dir·est
  1. Warning of or having dreadful or terrible consequences; calamitous: a dire economic forecast; dire threats.
  2. Urgent; desperate: in dire need; dire poverty.

[Latin dīrus, fearsome, terrible; akin to Greek deinos.]
dire'ly adv., dire'ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Dire

Dire\, a. [Compar. Direr; superl. Direst.] [L. dirus; of uncertain origin.]

1. Ill-boding; portentous; as, dire omens.

2. Evil in great degree; dreadful; dismal; horrible; terrible; lamentable.

Dire was the tossing, deep the groans. --Milton.

Gorgons and hydras and chimeras dire. --Milton.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : dire
Spanish: terrible, espantoso, atroz,
German: gräßlich,
Japanese: 恐ろしい
More Translations »

dire 
1567, from L. dirus "fearful, awful, boding ill," from Oscan and Umbrian, cognate with Gk. deinos, from PIE base *dwei-.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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