scandal
Americannoun
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a disgraceful or discreditable action, circumstance, etc.
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an offense caused by a fault or misdeed.
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damage to reputation; public disgrace.
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defamatory talk; malicious gossip.
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a person whose conduct brings disgrace or offense.
verb (used with object)
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British Dialect. to defame (someone) by spreading scandal.
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Obsolete. to disgrace.
noun
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a disgraceful action or event
his negligence was a scandal
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censure or outrage arising from an action or event
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a person whose conduct causes reproach or disgrace
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malicious talk, esp gossip about the private lives of other people
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law a libellous action or statement
verb
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to disgrace
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to scandalize
Related Words
See gossip.
Other Word Forms
- miniscandal noun
- scandalous adjective
- scandalously adverb
- scandalousness noun
- superscandal noun
Etymology
Origin of scandal
1175–1225; from Late Latin scandalum from Late Greek skándalon “snare, cause of moral stumbling”; replacing Middle English scandle from Old French (north) escandle from Late Latin, as above
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 so-called "Car Wash" scandal, which erupted in 2014, has landed dozens of top politicians and business figures behind bars.
From Barron's
The commissioner and the mayor are also under pressure to improve confidence in policing following a series of scandals.
From BBC
His deployment of troops to fight jihadists in Somalia, and an open-door policy to refugees, won favour from foreign donors, even as they triggered corruption scandals at home.
From Barron's
Clunes will portray the Bridgend-born newsreader in the series by television channel 5, which says it will recount how the scandal unfolded and feature interviews from those who first reported the story.
From BBC
The freeze is being justified in part because of the social services scandal in Minnesota, which found some Minnesotans fraudulently using pandemic and social safety funds without providing social services.
From Salon
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.
