anathematize
Americanverb (used with object)
verb (used without object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of anathematize
1560–70; (< Middle French ) < Late Latin anathematizāre to put under the ban, curse, detest < Greek anathematízein to bind by a curse, make accursed, equivalent to anathemat- (stem of anáthema ) + -izein -ize
Explanation
The verb anathematize means to completely condemn, something you would do to a mortal enemy or a truly horrible person. If you've decided that your math teacher is just plain evil, you might anathematize him, or curse his name. The word anathematize comes from anathema, which means something you really hate. When you anathematize someone, you declare your hatred for that person. The root word is the Greek anathematizein, which means "to denote something to be evil."
Vocabulary lists containing anathematize
John Leonard on Doris Lessing's "Time Bites" and more
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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 is to Mr. Hale’s great credit that he refuses to anathematize the prodigal children in his book.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 12, 2026
Should we anathematize communication with half the population?
From Washington Post ● Dec. 31, 2020
This became another reason to anathematize Golden Books, which were for decades shunned by library buyers.
From Slate ● Jan. 12, 2017
To devote to destruction; to imprecate misery or evil upon; to curse; to execrate; to anathematize.
From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary by Noah Webster
You grumbled at everything when you first came to California, and now that you have become philosophical like the rest of us, you only anathematize when you are put out.
From Ancestors A Novel by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
Bayless anathematized James as a diva who was tough when trouncing inferior competition but “soft” when the lights were brightest.
From The New Yorker ● Jun. 18, 2018
BuzzFeed was so anathematized that by presser’s end, fellow journalists were picking up their lunch trays and moving to the other side of the cafeteria.
From Slate ● Jan. 12, 2017
Artur Rodzinski, conductor of the New York Philharmonic, anathematized jazz.
From Time Magazine Archive
She told of a handsome Maltese-Angora cat which was anathematized by Calvin Coolidge who, disliking fancy breeds, said: "Anyone can see that his name is Mud."
From Time Magazine Archive
Bishop Barrow, who ascended the episcopal throne at Carlisle in 1423, anathematized all men who took the heriot before “the Holy Kirke” got the mortuary.
From Bygone Cumberland and Westmorland by Daniel Scott
In some ways, the grotesqueries of his persona, rather than anathematizing him to voters, only enhanced his appeal among those wishing for something different.
From Slate ● Jan. 24, 2017
Would it be out of order to suggest a cursory glance at past history, sacred and secular, before completely anathematizing Heflin's stand?
From Time Magazine Archive
In Constantinople the Most Holy Patriarch Basil of the Greek Orthodox Church was incensed, last week, to the point of anathematizing the new Albanian Synod.
From Time Magazine Archive
Widows and orphans thrust themselves before his face with anathematizing countenances.
From An American Girl Abroad by Adeline Trafton
"Yes, sir, I am sure they were false," he finally answered, while inwardly anathematizing himself at being caught in such a trap.
From Under Fire A Tale of New England Village Life by Frank Andrew Munsey
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
