down in the dumps

1. In a gloomy or depressed mood: “After losing the student election, Jack really felt down in the dumps.”

Idioms and Phrases

Also, down in the mouth. Discouraged, depressed, or sad, as in She's been down in the dumps ever since she lost the match, or What's wrong with him? He's so down in the mouth about everything. The noun dumps has been used for “a state of depression” since the early 1500s, and down in the mouth, alluding to the downturned corners of the mouth as a sign of misery, dates from the mid-1600s.

Example Sentences

"Morale is already down in the dumps among the base, among members and councillors. How is this going to help?" another Labour figure said.

From BBC

"Morale is down in the dumps," Bastien Brusaferro of the general winegrowers' union told France Info.

From BBC

Cleaning shouldn’t leave you down in the dumps.

From Seattle Times

He was really down in the dumps for a lot of his life and what he managed to do was really remarkable.

From Salon

“I was kind of down in the dumps for a little while, honestly.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• depressed 
• dismal 
• dour 
• forlorn 
• glum 
• melancholy 
• miserable 
• pessimistic 
• sad 
• solemn 
• sullen 
• ugly