What is the meaning of desperate?

noun

• A person who is frightened and in need of help.
  • usage: "they prey on the hopes of the desperate"

adjective

• Arising from or marked by despair or loss of hope.
  • usage: "a despairing view of the world situation"; "the last despairing plea of the condemned criminal"; "a desperate cry for help"; "helpless and desperate-as if at the end of his tether"; "her desperate screams"
  • synonyms: despairing
• Desperately determined.
  • usage: "do-or-die revolutionaries"; "a do-or-die conflict"
  • synonyms: do-or-die
• Of persons. ( dangerously reckless or violent as from urgency or despair)
  • usage: "a desperate criminal"; "taken hostage of desperate men"
• Showing extreme courage; especially of actions courageously undertaken in desperation as a last resort.
  • usage: "made a last desperate attempt to reach the climber"; "the desperate gallantry of our naval task forces marked the turning point in the Pacific war- G. C. Marshall; "they took heroic measures to save his life"
  • synonyms: heroic
• Showing extreme urgency or intensity especially because of great need or desire.
  • usage: "felt a desperate urge to confess"; "a desperate need for recognition"
• Fraught with extreme danger; nearly hopeless.
  • usage: "a desperate illness"; "on all fronts the Allies were in a desperate situation due to lack of materiel- G. C. Marshall; "a dire emergency"
  • synonyms: dire