noun
-
disgrace or public shame; dishonour
-
a cause of disgrace; a shameful act
Synonym Usage
See disgrace.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of ignominy
1530–40; < Latin ignōminia, equivalent to ig- (for in- in- 3, apparently by association with ignōbilis ignoble, ignōtus unknown, etc.; cf. cognomen) + nōmin- (stem of nōmen ) name + -ia -y 3
Explanation
If you walk into class in your underwear, you'll know what the word ignominy means. Ignominy is a noun meaning great public shame, disgrace, or embarrassment, or a situation or event that causes this. The shame can be major or minor: someone can suffer the ignominy of defeat or the ignominies of old age. When pronouncing this word, the main accent is on the first syllable, and the secondary accent is on the third syllable. Ignominy is from Latin the ignominia, formed from the prefix in-, "no, not," plus nomen, "name." The implication is that if someone has suffered ignominy, they have lost their good name or reputation.
Vocabulary lists containing ignominy
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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:
It was believed to be the only red card ever handed out after a World Cup final, and the ignominy it brought was well-deserved.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
So by this season, Cardinals fans had already saddled Walker with the ultimate label of ignominy: He was a bust.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026
And so there has been a pileup of ignominy referred to a busier-than-ever Ethics Committee.
From Slate ● Apr. 16, 2026
DeChambeau, one of the fancied picks before the tournament, suffered the ignominy of missing the cut when a disastrous finish pushed him to six over.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026
The damnable metal frightened him in its unnaturalness, and he felt already the ignominy of defeat.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Who never spoke about their ignominies because they were afraid we wouldn’t be there for them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
The works performed by Blue Heron escaped such ignominies because a chorister from Magdalene College, Oxford, copied them out for use in the newly reconstituted Canterbury Cathedral.
From New York Times ● Feb. 11, 2019
In addition to these ignominies, the news shows faced declining ratings.
From Slate ● Jan. 7, 2019
After Vrabel reported those ignominies, the live-stream discussion switched to a debate over what constitutes sexism.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 27, 2017
And Terryl felt the other ignominies in her life, such as sometimes showing up at school without a lunch.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
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.
