scandal

American  

[skan-dl] / ˈskæn dl /

noun

• scandals
  plural

1. a disgraceful or discreditable action, circumstance, etc.

2. an offense caused by a fault or misdeed.

3. damage to reputation; public disgrace.

   Synonyms:

   ignominy, opprobrium, disrepute, shame, dishonor, discredit

4. defamatory talk; malicious gossip.

   Synonyms:

   obloquy, aspersion, calumny, slander

   Antonyms:

   praise, honor

5. a person whose conduct brings disgrace or offense.

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verb (used with object)

scandaled, scandaling, scandalled, scandalling

1. British Dialect. to defame (someone) by spreading scandal.

2. Obsolete. to disgrace.

scandal British  

/ ˈskændəl /

noun

1. a disgraceful action or event

   his negligence was a scandal

2. censure or outrage arising from an action or event

3. a person whose conduct causes reproach or disgrace

4. malicious talk, esp gossip about the private lives of other people

5. law a libellous action or statement

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verb

1. to disgrace

2. to scandalize

Synonym Usage

See gossip.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• miniscandal
  noun
• scandalousness
  noun
• superscandal
  noun
• scandalous
  adjective
• scandalously
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• scandals
  plural

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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

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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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scandal scandals

The estrangement between Orthodox Christians and Catholics is a scandal.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Both said that the scandal dominating the headlines and the loss of their dream jobs sent them into the depths of despair.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 14, 2026

If audiences already know the intimate details of how a very real public leak, whistle-blow, or scandal came together, what’s left for them to learn by fictionalizing it all?

From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026

What's it like to be the main character of an online scandal?

From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026

Newsies send their black gossip post-balloons and navy story post-balloons through the halls, hoping to catch a snippet of something for the newsreels and tattlers and scandal sheets.

From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton

After numerous scandals under Moore, McDonnell was seen as offering stability while the city prepared for the massive security challenges of the World Cup and Olympic Games.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

Noem was summoned before Congress over those scandals and others, including her alleged misuse of government funds on television advertisements and private luxury jets.

From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026

Initiatives to label books as written by humans, and not artificial intelligence, are gaining ground following a string of scandals where authors were suspected of using the technology without admitting it.

From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026

Another former banker sentenced in one of the biggest scandals of the financial crisis has had his conviction overturned following a long-running legal battle.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

The tensions grew when the Department of Defense tightened security after several spy scandals.

From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield

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Related Words

• crime
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• wrongdoing

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