disgust
Americanverb (used with object)
-
disgusts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disgusted,
past participle, past
-
disgusting
present participle
noun
-
repugnance caused by something offensive; strong aversion.
He left the room in disgust.
- Synonyms:
- antipathy, detestation, abhorrence
- Antonyms:
- relish
verb
-
to sicken or fill with loathing
-
to offend the moral sense, principles, or taste of
noun
-
a great loathing or distaste aroused by someone or something
-
as a result of disgust
Synonym Usage
See dislike.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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disgustednessnoun
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predisgustnoun
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self-disgustnoun
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quasi-disgustedadjective
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undisgustedadjective
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disgustedlyadverb
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quasi-disgustedlyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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disgustsimple
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disgustssimple
-
have disgustedperfect
-
has disgustedperfect
-
am disgustingprogressive
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are disgustingprogressive
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is disgustingprogressive
-
have been disgustingperfect progressive
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has been disgustingperfect progressive
Past
-
disgustedsimple
-
had disgustedperfect
-
was disgustingprogressive
-
were disgustingprogressive
-
had been disgustingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disgust
First recorded in 1590–1600; (for the verb) from Middle French desgouster, from des- dis- 1 + gouster “to taste, relish” (derivative of goust “taste,” from Latin gusta; see also choose); noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
Disgust is a strong feeling of dislike. If you can't stand peas, you might wrinkle your nose in disgust when you are served a bowl of pea soup. Disgust is both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it's a reaction to something you think is gross or terrible, like showing your disgust at a movie by getting up and leaving. As a verb, disgust means "to offend," like when your class's bad behavior at the assembly disgusts all the teachers, or "to gross out or revolt." If you pick your nose in public, you will disgust everyone around you.
Vocabulary lists containing disgust
The SAT: Words to Capture Tone, List 2
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The New SAT: Words to Capture Tone
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Emotions on Display
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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:
Hodgkinson jokingly removed her medal in disgust when asked how she felt after the final.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Many of the works on display doubtless make for difficult viewing, but shock and disgust are not the point.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
“I hope they put those people who killed him in prison for many years,” he said with disgust.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2026
They bonded over a shared disgust at gladiator shoes, and soon thereafter, were in a relationship.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
“It’s not the same,” he said, throwing the schedule down in disgust.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
“Last year’s film kind of disgusts me a little bit when I look at myself,” Thibodeaux said.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 30, 2023
Monica Missio, the mother of victim Nicholas Cleves, told the courtroom: "It disgusts me that he gets to wake up every day while my son does not."
From BBC ● May 18, 2023
“It saddens me, it disgusts me and disheartens me,” Alvarez said.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2023
“It really disgusts me,” said Romain Le Riguer, a 20-year-old literature student, who had spontaneously come to the plaza.
From New York Times ● Mar. 16, 2023
The hoarding disgusts the soldiers raised in 13.
From "Mockingjay" by Suzanne Collins
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have warned about a growing parasitic outbreak that causes explosive diarrhea, which has delighted and disgusted the internet, because of course it has.
From Salon ● Jul. 10, 2026
She argues that Richmond, alienated from the king and disgusted by parliamentary passivity, kindled a printed firestorm in the public sphere.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
"I am disgusted by the way my parents were treated."
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
One woman, who declined to give her name, looked almost disgusted as she passed the Wilshire/Cienega station, calling L.A.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 8, 2026
“You are very kind, but I know what my manners were to you.—So cold and artificial!—I had always a part to act.—It was a life of deceit!—I know that I must have disgusted you.”
From "Emma" by Jane Austen
Self-defense, the historian wrote, naturally required “the perpetual repetition” of what he called “the vainest and most disgusting of the pronouns”: the first-person singular.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
The second got more personal: “Someday, your children will come across your disgusting and inhumane question,” it read.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
"Actions by those who carried out this horrific act of terror meant to intimidate and harass this family are disgusting," Huckabee wrote on X on Thursday.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
“Allegations that DHS law enforcement engages in ‘racial profiling’ are disgusting, reckless, and categorically FALSE,” the spokesperson wrote.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
“So I see. Now take these disgusting things two by two, and throw them out of the window.”
From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott
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.
