disdain
Americanverb (used with object)
noun
noun
verb
Synonym Usage
See contempt.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
disdainsimple
-
disdainssimple
-
have disdainedperfect
-
has disdainedperfect
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am disdainingprogressive
-
are disdainingprogressive
-
is disdainingprogressive
-
have been disdainingperfect progressive
-
has been disdainingperfect progressive
Past
-
disdainedsimple
-
had disdainedperfect
-
was disdainingprogressive
-
were disdainingprogressive
-
had been disdainingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disdain
First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English disdainen, from Anglo-French de(s)deigner, equivalent to dis- 1 + deign; noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
If you feel that something isn't worthy of your consideration, you may disdain it (or treat it with disdain). In Old French, deignier meant "to treat something as worthy." To disdain something, then, is to treat it with contempt: "Management at [the company] displayed a certain disdain for safety and appeared to regard safety-conscious workers as wimps in the organization." As a verb, disdain carries an air of self-righteousness not associated with similar words like despise, abhor, detest, loathe and scorn. So if you disdain something, you might reject it with a haughty scoff, "Ha!"
Vocabulary lists containing disdain
100 Words Every Middle Schooler Should Know
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The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 1
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100 Top "SAT" Words
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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.
Disdain for the new requirements is not universal; Matrix, a nonprofit organization working to build an open-source standard for encrypted communication, published a blog post Friday explaining some possible technical paths forward.
From The Verge • Mar. 29, 2022
Disdain appears to be the consensus view from the pundits.
From The Guardian • Aug. 1, 2020
Disdain is barely hidden beneath the sweetness, like the smirk you might wear when you tell someone, “Bless your heart.”
From Slate • Apr. 23, 2019
Disdain for country music is as old as the genre itself, and appropriately, mainstream critics have disliked Bryan from the beginning and have tended to treat him with some combination of amusement and animosity.
From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2017
The Clerks upon several Occasions performing too great a Share of divine Services, expose the Church to Shame and Danger, and often bring Contempt and Disdain upon the Persons and Function of the Ministers.
From The Present State of Virginia by Jones, Hugh
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.
