execrate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to detest utterly; abhor; abominate.
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to curse; imprecate evil upon; damn; denounce.
He execrated all who opposed him.
verb (used without object)
verb
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(tr) to loathe; detest; abhor
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(tr) to profess great abhorrence for; denounce; deplore
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to curse (a person or thing); damn
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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has execratedperfect 3rd person singular
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are execratingprogressive
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have execratedperfect
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is execratingprogressive 3rd person singular
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have been execratingperfect progressive
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am execratingprogressive 1st person singular
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has been execratingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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execratingparticiple
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execratessingular 3rd person
Past
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had execratedperfect
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execratedparticiple
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were execratingprogressive plural
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was execratingprogressive singular
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had been execratingperfect progressive
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execratedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of execrate
1555–65; < Latin ex ( s ) ecrātus (past participle of ex ( s ) ecrārī to curse), equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + secr- (combining form of sacrāre to consecrate; see sacrament) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Just when you thought you knew every word in the book for hate, here's a new one: execrate. The word means to despise or also to curse. Broken down to its Latin root, the word execrate means the opposite of being sacred or devoted to. When you execrate something, you are cursing it instead of making it holy. The word is not used all that often. If you say to someone, "I execrate you!" they might think you're casting an evil spell on them. Which in a way, by cursing them, you are.
Vocabulary lists containing execrate
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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.
Execrate, eks′e-krāt, v.t. to curse: to denounce evil against: to detest utterly.—adj.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 2 of 4: E-M) by Various
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.
