condemn
Americanverb (used with object)
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condemns,
present (3rd person singular)
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condemned,
past participle, past
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condemning
present participle
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to express an unfavorable or adverse judgment on; indicate strong disapproval of; censure.
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to pronounce to be guilty; sentence to punishment.
to condemn a murderer to life imprisonment.
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to give grounds or reason for convicting or censuring.
His acts condemn him.
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to judge or pronounce to be unfit for use or service.
to condemn an old building.
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U.S. Law. to acquire ownership of for a public purpose, under the right of eminent domain.
The city condemned the property.
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to force into a specific state or activity.
His lack of education condemned him to a life of menial jobs.
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to doom to eternal punishment in hell.
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to declare incurable.
verb
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to express strong disapproval of; censure
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to pronounce judicial sentence on
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to demonstrate the guilt of
his secretive behaviour condemned him
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to judge or pronounce unfit for use
that food has been condemned
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to compel or force into a particular state or activity
his disposition condemned him to boredom
Synonym Usage
See blame.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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condemnationnoun
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condemnernoun
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condemnornoun
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recondemnverb (used with object)
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condemnableadjective
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self-condemningadjective
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uncondemnableadjective
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uncondemningadjective
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condemnablyadverb
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condemninglyadverb
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uncondemninglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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condemnsimple
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condemnssimple
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have condemnedperfect
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has condemnedperfect
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am condemningprogressive
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are condemningprogressive
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is condemningprogressive
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have been condemningperfect progressive
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has been condemningperfect progressive
Past
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condemnedsimple
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had condemnedperfect
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was condemningprogressive
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were condemningprogressive
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had been condemningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of condemn
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English condempnen, from Anglo-French, Old French condem(p)ner, from Latin condemnāre; see con-, damn
Explanation
You can condemn, or openly criticize, someone who is behaving inappropriately. If you are an animal rights activist, you would probably condemn someone for wearing fur. Condemn originally comes, through Old French, from the Latin word condemnāre, "to sentence, condemn." You may see politicians condemn each other in political ads during a campaign in hopes of improving their chances of winning an election. You also might hear of a convict being "condemned to death." In this sense of the word, to condemn still carries on its Latin meaning of "to sentence."
Vocabulary lists containing condemn
List 3
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The Silent Treatment: Words Plagued by Silent Letters
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act V
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
United States, to condemn the Tenure of Office Act and strike down a Reconstruction-era regulation of the presidency.
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
Thanks to French-Saudi efforts, this declaration was the first U.N.-endorsed text to condemn the attacks of Oct.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
Was the US, too, going to condemn Britain's policy?
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
“Andrew and Channel 5 strongly condemn memecoins and want nothing to do with them.”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
He had been organizing other ministers in Little Rock to speak out and condemn the governor for dispatching the troops.
From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals
"The organisation condemns these unjustified and disproportionate proceedings and calls for the immediate release of the French media professionals."
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Hamawy has said he condemns Abdel-Rahman’s violent rhetoric and actions and that he had no contact with the cleric after his arrest.
From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026
Weeks before the elections, Meloni released videos in multiple languages saying the Italian right “unambiguously” condemns the fascist regime’s suppression of democracy and antisemitic policies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
The United Nations said on Friday it "strongly condemns any attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, wherever they occur", adding it could not verify details due to restricted access to the area.
From Barron's ● May 24, 2026
It’s almost time to go “Also,” Minerva adds, “Padre Ignacio condemns fortunes only if you believe a human being knows what only God can know.”
From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez
The Committee to Protect Journalists, the Radio Television Digital News Association and even Acosta’s peers at The Daily Caller – a right-leaning news outlet – condemned the White House ban.
From Salon ● Sep. 22, 2026
Kirk Watson, the city’s Democratic mayor, condemned the shooting.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Sen. John Cornyn condemned his “intolerance and racism,” warning “this is how great political parties self-destruct.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 16, 2026
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation -- a bloc of 57 Muslim countries -- condemned the "heinous" attack.
From Barron's ● Sep. 16, 2026
In the end, Montaigne was unable to publish The Discourse because it had already been published by Protestant rebels and condemned as seditious.
From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton
El-Sayed’s campaign had already released a video condemning and memorializing 9/11 that morning.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
The Gulf Co-operation Council – made up of representatives from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait – also issued a missive condemning the attack.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
China’s Commerce Ministry backed the move, condemning the EU probe as an “unjustified suppression on Chinese enterprises.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Kushner drafted a statement condemning the Capitol violence that the White House never issued.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2026
He released sincere public statements deploring the shooting and condemning it as evil.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
