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detestation

[dee-te-stey-shuh n]
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noun
  1. abhorrence; hatred.
  2. a person or thing detested.
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Origin of detestation

1375–1425; late Middle English (< Middle French) < Latin dētestātiōn- (stem of dētestātiō), equivalent to dētestāt(us) (past participle of dētestārī to detest; see -ate1) + -iōn- -ion
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for detestation

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • For once, the music of her voice was lost in a discordant cry of detestation.

    Within the Law

    Marvin Dana

  • It is at about this period that my detestation of Calais knows no bounds.

  • Thirdly, that they are never set forth as the objects of ridicule, but detestation.

    Joseph Andrews Vol. 1

    Henry Fielding

  • Detestation of the high is the involuntary homage of the low.

    A Tale of Two Cities

    Charles Dickens

  • His detestation of the race increased, while yet every nerve was alert to miss no chance.

    The Law-Breakers

    Ridgwell Cullum

British Dictionary definitions for detestation

detestation

noun
  1. intense hatred; abhorrence
  2. a person or thing that is detested
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for detestation

n.

mid-15c., from French détestation (14c.), from Latin detestationem (nominative detestatio) "execration, detestation," from past participle stem of detestari (see detest).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper