downer

American  

[dou-ner] / ˈdaʊ nər /

noun

1. Informal.

   1. a depressant or sedative drug, especially a barbiturate.

   2. a depressing experience, person, or situation.

2. Animal Husbandry. an old or diseased animal, especially one that cannot stand up.

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downer British  

/ ˈdaʊnə /

noun

1. Also called: down.  a barbiturate, tranquillizer, or narcotic Compare upper

2. a depressing experience

3. a state of depression

   he's on a downer today

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Etymology

Origin of downer

1910–15, for an earlier sense; 1965–70, downer for def. 1; down ¹ + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Eventually she started Go Gentle, but still, her heroine was a downer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

The only downer with “Welcome Tour,” which is primarily designed to show off the console’s capabilities, is that it doesn’t come bundled with the Switch 2.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 7, 2025

Made in collaboration with Pallenberg’s son Marlon Richards, “Catching Fire” is a redemptive portrait that nevertheless plays like a downer.

From New York Times • May 2, 2024

For Northampton the slight downer - and these things are relative - is that they didn't land a bonus point.

From BBC • Dec. 8, 2023

For a man, having red hair or curly hair is a downer, as is “bald with a fringe”—but a shaved head is okay.

From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt