detest
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Related Words
See hate.
Other Word Forms
- detester noun
- undetested adjective
- undetesting adjective
Etymology
Origin of detest
First recorded in 1525–35; from Middle French detester, from Latin dētestārī “to call down a curse upon, loathe,” equivalent to dē- de- + testārī “to bear witness”; testate
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.
Ethnic Persians are about half the population, and even those who detest the theocratic regime don’t want the country to break up or descend into civil war.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 8, 2026
So can a bridge be built between those who detest the love locks, and those who want them to stay in Bakewell?
From BBC • Aug. 4, 2024
“I detest it, the mere idea of it,” Freeman told Variety in a recent interview about “The Gray House,” a historical drama series about the work of Union spies during the Civil War.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 17, 2024
Not only do the Fremen detest colonizers mining their planet for spice and often attack them, the mining operation is also a dangerous activity in and of itself.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 27, 2024
And then they tell me I have to wear eyeliner, which I absolutely detest.
From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli
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.
