derogatory
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of derogatory
First recorded in 1495–1505; from Late Latin dērogātōrius “belonging to a repeal”; equivalent to derogate + -tory 1
Explanation
Something that's derogatory is insulting or disrespectful. If you make derogatory comments, that means you say things that are unflattering, unkind, or demeaning. Derogatory means about the same as insulting. Derogatory language is meant to hurt, and it usually does. If you feel offended or insulted by what someone says, the person probably said something derogatory. Racial, sexist, and homophobic slurs are all derogatory. Insults that mean someone is stupid or crazy are derogatory. Making a joke about someone's mother is derogatory.
Vocabulary lists containing derogatory
Of Mice and Men
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"Of Mice and Men"
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Grade 9, List 5
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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.
Derogatory WhatsApp messages between Scotland's first minister and its national clinical director have been published by the UK Covid Inquiry.
From BBC • Jan. 26, 2024
"Derogatory comments are the main ones that come up," she says.
From BBC • Dec. 22, 2022
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland established the Derogatory Geographic Names Task Force in November to remove and replace such terms across federal lands.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 24, 2022
The order also established a Derogatory Geographic Names Task Force, which took in more than 1,000 public recommendations for new names and several hundred from almost 70 tribal governments.
From Washington Times • Sep. 8, 2022
Derogatory term for those who would impose their standards on other users of the Net.
From Big Dummy's Guide to the Internet by Electronic Frontier Foundation
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.
