discourage/dIsˋkɝIdʒ; dIsˈkʌrIdʒ/v [T]1 to persuade someone not to do something [ encourage ](设法)劝阻﹐阻止: attempts to discourage illegal immigration 设法阻止非法移民的尝试discourage sb from doing sth They’re trying to discourage staff from smoking at work. 他们设法劝阻员工在工作时吸烟。2 to make someone less confident or less willing to do something [ encourage ] 使泄气﹐使灰心: Don’t let one failure discourage you. 不要让一次失败就使你灰心丧气。—discouragement n [C,U]