scandal
Americannoun
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a disgraceful or discreditable action, circumstance, etc.
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an offense caused by a fault or misdeed.
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damage to reputation; public disgrace.
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defamatory talk; malicious gossip.
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a person whose conduct brings disgrace or offense.
verb (used with object)
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British Dialect. to defame (someone) by spreading scandal.
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Obsolete. to disgrace.
noun
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a disgraceful action or event
his negligence was a scandal
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censure or outrage arising from an action or event
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a person whose conduct causes reproach or disgrace
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malicious talk, esp gossip about the private lives of other people
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law a libellous action or statement
verb
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to disgrace
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to scandalize
Synonym Usage
See gossip.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of scandal
1175–1225; from Late Latin scandalum from Late Greek skándalon “snare, cause of moral stumbling”; replacing Middle English scandle from Old French (north) escandle from Late Latin, as above
Explanation
Scandal is disgraceful events or nasty gossip about people's private lives, like the scandal that erupted when you were seen at the mall with your best friend's girlfriend. Just because there's a scandal, it doesn't mean it's always true — being seen with your friend's girl? What the gossips didn't know it that you were buying his birthday present. Some scandals, though, involve public figures who have been found guilty. For example, if a politician is found guilty of taking bribes, that's a scandal that will rock your town, causing outrage not to mention the end of that politician's career.
Vocabulary lists containing scandal
"Laws are not the only way to boost immunization”: an editorial from Nature
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 11–September 17, 2021
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Simply Scandalous!
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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:
The story journalists told about Mark Lamb’s victory Tuesday night was one of victory over scandal.
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
Despite his involvement in the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal in 2017, ex-Dodgers infielder Alex Cora remains a respected manager who should rebound from the Red Sox firing him.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
That came on top of another scandal related to the online marking system of tests taken by nearly two million high school students.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
However, his campaign was dogged by scandal, most notably including the revelation that he had a Totenkopf tattoo and allegations of “unsettling” behavior from past girlfriends.
From Salon ● Jul. 18, 2026
Despite Leah’s protests, scandal haunted the Fox sisters.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
He must distance himself from his former ally’s personal scandals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
Jackson, who campaigned heavily with Platner before the scandals, had the support of roughly 75 percent of the volunteers who rallied behind the now-disgraced former Senate candidate.
From Slate ● Jul. 24, 2026
He announced that he would resign as prime minister and Labour Party leader in June after a string of scandals, missteps and policy U-turns blighted his leadership.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
By rubber-stamping a fourth term despite these toxic scandals, football's governing bodies are showing they are content to sit in rotten squalor rather than strive for something better.
From BBC ● Jul. 18, 2026
Most of them had several years on me, and I could never shake the feeling that they were privy to family secrets and scandals that I was too young and innocent to know about.
From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi
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.
