discriminatory

American  

[dih-skrim-uh-nuh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] / dɪˈskrɪm ə nəˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i /

adjective

1. characterized by or showing prejudicial treatment, especially as an indication of bias related to age, race, skin color, national origin, religion, sex, gender, etc..

   Discriminatory practices in housing historically led to racially segregated neighborhoods.

   They passed a discriminatory tax mainly impacting immigrants to the country.

2. discriminative.

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discriminatory British  

/ -trɪ, dɪˈskrɪmɪnətɪv, dɪˈskrɪmɪnətərɪ /

adjective

1. based on or showing prejudice; biased

2. capable of making fine distinctions

3. (of a statistical test) unbiased

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Other Word Forms

• discriminatorily adverb
• nondiscriminatory adjective
• undiscriminatory adjective

Etymology

Origin of discriminatory

First recorded in 1820–30; discriminate + -ory ¹

Example Sentences

The lawsuit doesn’t accuse Harvard of conducting discriminatory conduct but is seeking a court injunction that would force the university to comply with its demand for documents.

From The Wall Street Journal

A dispute that saw South Korea's players threaten to boycott next month's Women's Asian Cup over "discriminatory conditions" has been resolved, football officials in the country said Tuesday.

From Barron's

The charity Assistance Dogs UK said it believed, from its understanding of the law, that the pub chain's policy was discriminatory and that no identification was legally required.

From BBC

Beijing accused the European Union on Wednesday of taking "discriminatory" measures after the bloc opened an investigation into Chinese clean energy giant Goldwind over concerns the firm unfairly benefitted from state subsidies.

From Barron's

Regulators have repeatedly warned against opaque algorithms and discriminatory pricing, and consumer trust remains fragile.

From Barron's

Related Words

• biased
• inequitable
• prejudiced
• unfair