scarlet letter
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of scarlet letter
An Americanism dating back to 1840–50
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.
Backers say the limits avoid saddling arrestees with a digital scarlet letter that can cause lasting harm in employment and housing even after an acquittal or dismissal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
"A hit list of the haves and the have-nots - a scarlet letter," Hanks said during a heated public meeting at City Hall on Tuesday.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Controversial newsmakers—Monica Lewinsky, Tonya Harding, Lorena Bobbitt among them—had the term pinioned to them like a scarlet letter, stripping away their accomplishments and leaving only scorned husks of their real selves.
From Salon ● Mar. 23, 2025
“But now I have, like, a scarlet letter and the medical stuff so even if I could go to work, my face would be doing gymnastics.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2024
But, through the remainder of Hester's life, there were indications that the recluse of the scarlet letter was the object of love and interest with some inhabitant of another land.
From The Scarlet Letter by Mary Hallock Foote
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
