disrespect
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
has disrespectedperfect 3rd person singular
-
have disrespectedperfect
-
have been disrespectingperfect progressive
-
has been disrespectingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
-
is disrespectingprogressive 3rd person singular
-
am disrespectingprogressive 1st person singular
-
are disrespectingprogressive
-
disrespectssingular 3rd person
-
disrespectingparticiple
Past
-
had disrespectedperfect
-
was disrespectingprogressive singular
-
disrespectedsimple
-
disrespectedparticiple
-
were disrespectingprogressive plural
-
had been disrespectingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disrespect
Explanation
To disrespect someone is to act in an insulting way toward them. When you disrespect people, you think very little of them. Disrespect is all about not showing respect. Actually, it's about showing the opposite of respect, by acting rude, impolite, and offensive. Talking back to your teacher is showing disrespect for her authority. Not giving up your seat to an elderly person is an act of disrespect. So is ignoring the customs and culture in a foreign country. The slang abbreviation dis comes from disrespect and means the same thing.
Vocabulary lists containing disrespect
Common Senses: Spec, Spect, Spic ("Look")
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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.
"Disrespect me and you will lose my respect in return."
From BBC • Sep. 10, 2024
“So hear me out, confusion is understandable. Disrespect is not. So tonight, we are going to help everyone get it right.”
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 23, 2024
Disrespect her, and she’ll twist you up in her frigid uncaring.
From Salon • Feb. 19, 2024
Disrespect guarantees full-time employment for personal finance journalists, too.
From New York Times • Sep. 3, 2022
However, they take care not to appear in this domestic Gala before the Emperor and Empress, because it would be reckon'd a Disrespect to them.
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.
