'Dire' definitions:

Definition of 'dire'

(from WordNet)
adjective
Fraught with extreme danger; nearly hopeless; "a desperate illness"; "on all fronts the Allies were in a desperate situation due to lack of materiel"- G.C.Marshall; "a dire emergency" [syn: desperate, dire]
adjective
Causing fear or dread or terror; "the awful war"; "an awful risk"; "dire news"; "a career or vengeance so direful that London was shocked"; "the dread presence of the headmaster"; "polio is no longer the dreaded disease it once was"; "a dreadful storm"; "a fearful howling"; "horrendous explosions shook the city"; "a terrible curse" [syn: awful, dire, direful, dread(a), dreaded, dreadful, fearful, fearsome, frightening, horrendous, horrific, terrible]

Definition of 'Dire'

From: GCIDE
  • Dire \Dire\ (d[imac]r), a. [Compar. Direr (d[imac]r"[~e]r); superl. Direst.] [L. dirus; of uncertain origin.]
  • 1. Ill-boding; portentous; as, dire omens. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. Evil in great degree; dreadful; dismal; horrible; terrible; lamentable. [1913 Webster]
  • Dire was the tossing, deep the groans. --Milton. [1913 Webster]
  • Gorgons and hydras and chimeras dire. --Milton. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'dire'

From: Moby Thesaurus