scandal
Americannoun
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scandals
plural
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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
Synonym Usage
See gossip.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
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
Explanation
Scandal is disgraceful events or nasty gossip about people's private lives, like the scandal that erupted when you were seen at the mall with your best friend's girlfriend. Just because there's a scandal, it doesn't mean it's always true — being seen with your friend's girl? What the gossips didn't know it that you were buying his birthday present. Some scandals, though, involve public figures who have been found guilty. For example, if a politician is found guilty of taking bribes, that's a scandal that will rock your town, causing outrage not to mention the end of that politician's career.
Vocabulary lists containing scandal
"Laws are not the only way to boost immunization”: an editorial from Nature
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This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 11–September 17, 2021
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Simply Scandalous!
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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.
See Examples For:
Senator Rafael Filizzola said: "We are facing the biggest corruption scandal in our democratic history – a tremendous blow to the state, to private citizens, and to the country's credibility and image."
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
The son of one of Malaysia's founding fathers, Najib was groomed for leadership from a young age but fell from power spectacularly as public anger mounted over the corruption scandal.
From Barron's ● Nov. 6, 2026
Nearly four years ago, the newlyweds and their journalist exes — also recent newlyweds — were embroiled in scandal.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 2, 2026
On the last day before the 2026 midterm elections, President Donald Trump gave a speech before the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a site of considerable scandal in his second term.
From Salon ● Nov. 2, 2026
“You mean, make a pet of one, like you do with your Bootsie? Of course not! If they did, the animal wouldn’t fight them. Think what a scandal that would be!”
From "Tiger, Tiger" by Lynne Reid Banks
The Catholic Church has been rocked by clerical sexual-abuse scandals in Chile and Argentina, while evangelical churches in Brazil have faced a wave of investigations.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
More than 30 people have signed the letter, including those affected by the maternity scandals.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
But none of the scandals with whiffs of corruption have so far triggered sensational backlash comparable to the Watergate saga, which led to Richard Nixon's resignation in 1974.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
Marshall’s own scandals may be helping Hamilton, too.
From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2026
The tensions grew when the Department of Defense tightened security after several spy scandals.
From "The Woman All Spies Fear" by Amy Butler Greenfield
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
