reproval
AmericanEtymology
Origin of reproval
Explanation
When you criticize or reprimand someone, you express reproval. Your parents' reproval will be understandable if you borrow their car without asking and then drive it into a tree. A judge may convey her reproval to a defendant who's found guilty with an especially harsh sentence. Your reproval of your dog for chewing your new shoes could take the form of an angry expression on your face, and a stern, "No!" The noun reproval comes from the verb reprove, "reprimand," from the Late Latin root reprobare, "disapprove, reject, or condemn."
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.
Lindsey openly acknowledges a 2011 reproval from the state bar, which referenced “emotional/physical difficulties” that “were not the product of any illegal conduct.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
The letter of reproval is made public when the ethics committee issues its final report on its investigation.
From Slate ● Mar. 16, 2023
A letter of reproval is the mildest form of punishment at the ethics committee’s disposal.
From Slate ● Mar. 16, 2023
Veteran L.A. lawyer Carl Douglas, who is Black and was given a public reproval in 1997 for allowing his secretary and investigator to sign subpoenas in his name while he worked on O.J.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 16, 2022
"I shall tell the doctor he needn't answer that question, Betty," she said, with just a shade of reproval in her voice.
From The Road to Understanding by Porter, Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman)
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.
