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.

The source of the Holy Fire has been a closely guarded secret for centuries, and highbrow skeptics going back to the Middle Ages have scorned it as a carnival trick for the masses.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 23, 2022

“The fact that critics have scorned it and the museum won’t even light it,” he said.

From The New Yorker • May 8, 2019

Off-campus, many have scorned those protesting the invitation.

From Slate • Mar. 23, 2018

And then there’s Post Malone, the viral hitmaker who seems like precisely the type of act that Goldenvoice’s mastermind, Paul Tollett, would once have scorned.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 3, 2018

Mr. Knightley and Harriet!—It was an odd tête-à-tête; but she was glad to see it.—There had been a time when he would have scorned her as a companion, and turned from her with little ceremony.

From "Emma" by Jane Austen