no-hoper
Bound to fail
A no-hoper is someone with no chance of success—a person considered hopeless or destined to fail.
The term applies to individuals lacking talent, ambition, or prospects: He dated a string of no-hopers before meeting his wife.
It extends to things unlikely to succeed: The bill was a no-hoper from the start.
Chiefly British and Australian.
Person avoiding owed payments
- washoutComplete failure or cancellation
- dudFailed device or effort
- flopComplete commercial failure
- ne'er-do-wellIrresponsible, idle person
good-for-nothing · layabout · slacker · bum · reject · misfit · underachiever · failure
Unlikely to succeed
- dark horseUnlikely but possible winner
- outsiderOne excluded from group
- underestimatedMisjudged as inferior
- overlookedNot noticed or considered
disadvantaged · struggler · minnow · little guy · Cinderella story · sleeper · David vs Goliath · plucky
Lack of purpose
- bleaknessQuality of being dreary
- despondencyProfound loss of hope
- dejectionState of lowness
- resignationVoluntary relinquishment of position
defeatism · fatalism · gloom · disheartenment · discouragement · giving up · pointlessness · inevitability
deadbeat
Person avoiding owed payments
ne'er-do-well · good-for-nothing · layabout · slacker · bum · reject · misfit · underachiever · failure · also-ran
long shot
Unlikely to succeed
- dark horseUnlikely but possible winner
- outsiderOne excluded from group
- underestimatedMisjudged as inferior
overlooked · disadvantaged · struggler · minnow · little guy · Cinderella story · sleeper · David vs Goliath · plucky · scrappy
futility
Lack of purpose
- bleaknessQuality of being dreary
- despondencyProfound loss of hope
- dejectionState of lowness
resignation · defeatism · fatalism · gloom · disheartenment · discouragement · giving up · pointlessness · inevitability · foregone conclusion
- Non-winnersloser, runner-up, beaten, defeated, second place
no-hoperrising star
Emerging person of promise
high-flyer · sure thing · golden boy · golden girl · wunderkind
no-hopercontender
One competing seriously
frontrunner · favourite · top seed · dark horse · competitor
no-hopersomebody
Unidentified individual
VIP · big shot · mover and shaker · success · heavyweight
hope, hopeful, hopeless, hoping, hopes, hoped, hopelessness, hopper, hopefulness