indignity
Americannoun
plural
indignities-
an injury to a person's dignity; slighting or contemptuous treatment; humiliating affront, insult, or injury.
- Synonyms:
- outrage
-
Obsolete. disgrace or disgraceful action.
noun
-
injury to one's self-esteem or dignity; humiliation
-
obsolete disgrace or disgraceful character or conduct
Related Words
See insult.
Etymology
Origin of indignity
First recorded in 1575–85; from Latin indignitās “unworthiness,” equivalent to indign(us) “undeserving, unworthy”( indign ) + -itās -ity
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.
His daughter-in-law Linda Kirkland, a former accountant, said this was "the final indignity".
From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026
She said John O'Sullivan had been responsible for the indignity and degradation his father endured and he had caused misery for the family.
From BBC • Jan. 20, 2026
“Goodbye June” mulls over the beauty of life and the indignity of death, but never fully engages with either facet of our relatively short existence.
From Salon • Jan. 1, 2026
Over the years, losers have suffered the indignity and stress of taking the SAT, performing a stand-up comedy routine that their friends wrote, or spending up to 24 hours in a Waffle House.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 2025
Normally, I would have let it pass, but I was too exhausted, too sore, and too upset, It was one indignity too far.
From "We Are the Ants" by Shaun David Hutchinson
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.
