dire

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.]

direly dire'ly adv.
direness dire'ness n.

adjective

1. Portending future disaster: apocalyptic, apocalyptical, baneful, direful, fateful, fire-and-brimstone, grave², hellfire, ominous, portentous, unlucky. See luck/misfortune/chance, warn/invite.
2. Causing or able to cause fear: appalling, direful, dreadful, fearful, fearsome, formidable, frightful, ghastly, redoubtable, scary, terrible, tremendous. See fear/courage.
3. Compelling immediate attention: burning, crying, emergent, exigent, imperative, instant, pressing, urgent. See big/small/amount.
4. So serious as to be at the point of crisis or necessary to resolve a crisis: acute, climacteric, critical, crucial, desperate. See safety/danger.

adj

Definition: terrible, ominous
Antonyms: fortunate, good, lucky, nice

adj

Definition: urgent; crucial
Antonyms: trivial, unimportant

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IN BRIEF: Dreadful. Also: Extreme.

When the travelers realized that they were lost and their food was gone their situation looked dire indeed.

Tutor's tip: If a "dyer" (one who colors material with dye) uses the wrong color, he could be in "dire" (having serious or terrible consequences; desperate) trouble with his supervisor.

Dansk (Danish)
adj. - skrækkelig, dyster, presserende

Nederlands (Dutch)
extreem, ijselijk, onheilspellend

Français (French)
adj. - affreux, sinistre, désespéré, terrible

Deutsch (German)
adj. - entsetzlich, unheilverkündend/-bringend, äußerst, höchst

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - αποτρόπαιος, ολέθριος

Italiano (Italian)
terribile

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - horroroso

Русский (Russian)
чудовищный, срочный

Español (Spanish)
adj. - horrible, terrible, espantoso, extremo, urgente

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - förfärlig, ödesdiger, trängande

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
可怕的, 阴惨的, 悲惨的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 可怕的, 陰慘的, 悲慘的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 끔찍한, (요구 등이) 긴급한

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 恐ろしい, 緊急の, 極度の

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) رهيب, ماس, جدا, منذر بشؤم‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮נורא, מפחיד‬

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dire straits	dire strait dvd
the dire dvd	dire straits dvds