hate speech

American  

[heyt speech] / ˈheɪt ˌspitʃ /

noun

1. speech, writing, or nonverbal communication that attacks, threatens, or insults a person or group on the basis of national origin, ethnicity, skin color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or disability.

   The racist graffiti was condemned as hate speech.

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hate speech British  

noun

1. speech disparaging a racial, sexual, or ethnic group or a member of such a group

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Etymology

Origin of hate speech

First recorded in 1935–40

Example Sentences

In addition, aggressive behavior, verbal and physical intimidation and hate speech were banned.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 10, 2026

The system automatically flags any inputs that aren’t contextually appropriate or contain banned words, hate speech or violence, said Gray Bright, Sixth Wall’s chief creative officer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 3, 2026

On TikTok, 83% of potential hate speech was not taken down, followed by 74% for Instagram.

From BBC • May 28, 2026

"We have evidence that terrorist content and illegal hate speech is persisting on some of the largest social media sites," said Oliver Griffiths, Ofcom's online safety director.

From Barron's • May 15, 2026

“I’ll be pressuring them to have some kind of schoolwide discussion on diversity and the dangers of hate speech like this.”

From "Finding Junie Kim" by Ellen Oh