disdain
Americanverb (used with object)
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disdains,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disdained,
past participle, past
-
disdaining
present participle
noun
noun
verb
Synonym Usage
See contempt.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
disdainsimple
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disdainssimple
-
have disdainedperfect
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has disdainedperfect
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am disdainingprogressive
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are disdainingprogressive
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is disdainingprogressive
-
have been disdainingperfect progressive
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has been disdainingperfect progressive
Past
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disdainedsimple
-
had disdainedperfect
-
was disdainingprogressive
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were disdainingprogressive
-
had been disdainingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disdain
First recorded in 1300–50; (for the verb) Middle English disdainen, from Anglo-French de(s)deigner, equivalent to dis- 1 + deign; noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
If you feel that something isn't worthy of your consideration, you may disdain it (or treat it with disdain). In Old French, deignier meant "to treat something as worthy." To disdain something, then, is to treat it with contempt: "Management at [the company] displayed a certain disdain for safety and appeared to regard safety-conscious workers as wimps in the organization." As a verb, disdain carries an air of self-righteousness not associated with similar words like despise, abhor, detest, loathe and scorn. So if you disdain something, you might reject it with a haughty scoff, "Ha!"
Vocabulary lists containing disdain
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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:
Eventually, his interest in our own vernacular building types, with their fusion of copycat gentility and aggressive disdain for anything attractive, came to provide him with much of the material of his art.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026
The disdain in her eyes wards off anyone from seeing weakness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
Another point in Europe’s favor is that international investors view the region much like Bessent does, with indifference if not disdain.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
When Oscars host Chevy Chase opened the 1988 ceremony with the rather soft quip, “Good evening, Hollywood phonies,” the disdain from the audience was palpable, and he was never asked to host the show again.
From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026
How grand it was to disdain the queen herself without fear of consequence!
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
With no action expected on rates on Wednesday, the attention will be on him: Will he submit a forecast for rate projections he disdains?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
For Polis, who disdains hardliners in both parties, ideology is something of a four-letter word.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 21, 2023
Sandra Angelloz is another producer who disdains Reblochon's "garnish" status.
From Salon ● Dec. 13, 2022
The trouble is, if you don’t care about what you do, if part of you disdains what you do, your only concern is what the work gets you.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 29, 2022
Do you see how awful it is to be in love with someone who disdains you?
From "The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams" by Daniel Nayeri
These same dons disdained Britain’s provincial universities—known pejoratively as Redbrick—as well as academics in the U.S., whom they scorned for going about their business with “woefully unnecessary seriousness.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Air conditioning, long disdained in France, is "no longer taboo at all", Jehanno said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
But the nearer Manzo was to the center of traditional politics, the more he disdained them.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2026
In Sondheim’s body of work, Okrent searches for the autobiographical resonances that Sondheim himself mostly disdained.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026
Does he remember this long-ago gesture, how he consoled me when Hamlet disdained my gift?
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
Elon Musk, best known for disdaining fossil fuels and selling close to 10 million electric vehicles, is actively advocating natural-gas turbines for data centers and chip factories.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Nxe3 Bf6!, again disdaining the rook on h4 to keep the attack humming.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 19, 2023
“I’m not incredibly interested in what he has to say about anything,” Rogen says, disdaining how little Gauthier considered the effects of his actions, especially on Anderson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2022
He was a true icon, prowling the world in search of glamour and beauty, disdaining “dreckitude.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 22, 2022
Beyond its battered frame the black-barked trees grew straight to the heavens, disdaining the forest floor, where tangled heather and brush hid the path leading from this lonely spot.
From "Ophelia" by Lisa Klein
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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.
