dess

Probably a clipping of desperate.^[1]

dess (comparative more dess, superlative most dess)

1. (MTE, slang) Unattractive, unappealing.
   • 2021 October 2, u/loading___help, “How did he even think he was getting away 😭”, in Reddit‎^[2], r/Torontology, archived from the original on 8 June 2024:

     They're honestly some of the dumbest niggas I've ever seen p.o is the most dess block in Toronto

   • 2023 August 18, @CHICVGO, Twitter‎^[3], archived from the original on 8 June 2024:

     Definitely need a few more female friends. This staying inside all the time/entertaining myself shit is dess. I am too young to be feeling this old due to a lack of friendships.

   • 2024 March 11, u/Click-Good, “Paperboy got hit up last night”, in Reddit‎^[4], r/Torontology, archived from the original on 8 June 2024:

     These kids are so dess. Imagine going live with bullet holes and tubes coming out you. Lmao insanity

   • 2024 April 13, @FCGunnis, Twitter‎^[5], archived from the original on 8 June 2024:

     Periods are dess asf!

dess (plural desses)

1. Obsolete form of dais.

• “dess”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “dess”, in Urban Dictionary, launched 1999.
• Melissa Douglas, Shiyan Liang (2024) “dess”, in Eshe Mercer-James, Elaine Gold, editors, A Dictionary of English in Multicultural Toronto‎^[6], Toronto, Ont.: Canadian Language Museum, archived from the original on 15 May 2024: “conventionally unattractive; insult.”

• ESDs, SDEs, SEDs, SSED, seds

From Old Norse þess, genitive of þat.

dess

1. the, when used with two comparatives.

   Dess tynnere røret er, dess større er høydeforskjellen, ...

   The thinner the tube, the greater the difference in height, ... (Wikipedia Kapillarkrefter)

• dessuten

• “dess” in The Bokmål Dictionary.
• “dess_2” in Det Norske Akademis ordbok (NAOB).

• IPA^(key): /dɛsː/

From Old Norse þess, masculine or neuter genitive singular of þat n.

dess

1. the (With a comparative or more and a verb phrase, establishes a parallel with one or more other such comparatives.)

   Dess sterkare, dess betre.

   The stronger, the better.

• di
• jo

dess

1. (rare, literary); possessive form of det.

dess

1. (rare, literary); possessive form of det.

• Dess (alternative capitalization)

dess m (definite singular dessen, indefinite plural dessar, definite plural dessane)

2. (music) D-flat

• dess-dur m

• “dess” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

From Proto-Celtic *dexswos.

• IPA^(key): /dʲes/

dess

1. right (side, as opposed to left)
   • c. 845, St Gall Glosses on Priscian, published in Thesaurus Palaeohibernicus (reprinted 1975, Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies), edited and with translations by Whitley Stokes and John Strachan, vol. II, pp. 49–224, Sg. 17^b2

     a lleth o laim deiss

     with the half from the right hand

2. south

• andes

• Irish: deas
• Manx: jiass
• Scottish Gaelic: deas
• Middle Irish: tess (adverb)
  • Irish: theas

• Gregory Toner, Sharon Arbuthnot, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh, Marie-Luise Theuerkauf, Dagmar Wodtko, editors (2019), “dess”, in eDIL: Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language

• deß (archaic)

• IPA^(key): /dɛsː/
• Rhymes: -ɛsː

dess

1. (possessive) its (3rd person singular inanimate common and neuter genitive)
2. At a specific given time, then

   Sen dess har de rivit stället

   Since then, they've torn the place down

   Till dess får du ha det så bra

   Until then, have a good time

3. (chiefly in some expressions) synonym of desto

dess n

1. (music) D-flat; the note D♭

• diss

• seds