scold

[skohld]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR scold ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to find fault with angrily; chide; reprimand: The teacher scolded me for being late.

verb (used without object)

to find fault; reprove.

to use abusive language.

noun

a person who is constantly scolding, often with loud and abusive speech.

common scold.

Origin of scold

1150–1200; (noun) Middle English, variant of scald < Old Norse skald poet (as author of insulting poems); see skald; (v.) Middle English scolden, derivative of the noun

Related formsscold·a·ble, adjectivescold·er, nounscold·ing·ly, adverbout·scold, verb (used with object)un·scold·ed, adjective

Synonyms for scold

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR scold ON THESAURUS.COM

1. reprove; censure. See reproach.

Antonyms for scold

1. praise.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for scold

criticize, castigate, taunt, denounce, chide, berate, blame, admonish, upbraid, censure, rebuke, reprimand, vilify, reproach, cavil, ream, reprobate, nag, revile, preach

Examples from the Web for scold

Contemporary Examples of scold

And then I wonder if I would be such a scold with my patients about any other issue.
Will This Pill Kill ‘Safe Sex’?
Russell Saunders
May 16, 2014
Given a choice between the scoundrel and the scold, who might the people go for?
Bring on the Made-for-Reality-TV District Race Down South
Michelle Cottle
February 25, 2014
The invitation from Peter Orlovsky provided an opportunity for her to scold Ginsberg once again.
The Mystery of the Allen Ginsberg-Diana Trilling Feud
Gregory Curtis
June 12, 2013
Before you scold me: I know how famous Higgins is, and how important she was.
History’s First Draft—in Partial Praise of Print Nostalgia
Tom McGeveran
December 4, 2012
Murray is right to worry about that separation—even if his only use of his correct perception is to scold.
What the Founders Would Tell Charles Murray
David Frum
February 7, 2012

Historical Examples of scold

"I'm not going to scold you, you silly little kitten," said the aunt cheerfully.
The Incomplete Amorist
E. Nesbit
Do you think I want to scold her; do you think I want to humble her?
The Incomplete Amorist
E. Nesbit
Shall I have to scold my coadjutor, or to reason with an intellect like this?
Life And Adventures Of Martin Chuzzlewit
Charles Dickens
"I sent for him to scold him," continued Orlando with a smile.
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola
How would you have me scold him when he weeps over it all with me?
The Three Cities Trilogy, Complete
Emile Zola

British Dictionary definitions for scold

scold

verb

to find fault with or reprimand (a person) harshly; chide

(intr) to use harsh or abusive language

noun

a person, esp a woman, who constantly finds fault

Derived Formsscoldable, adjectivescolder, nounscolding, nounscoldingly, adverb

Word Origin for scold

C13: from Old Norse skald

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for scold

mid-12c., "person of ribald speech," later "person fond of abusive language" (c.1300), especially a shrewish woman [Johnson defines it as "A clamourous, rude, mean, low, foul-mouthed woman"], from Old Norse skald "poet" (see skald). The sense evolution might reflect the fact that Germanic poets (like their Celtic counterparts) were famously feared for their ability to lampoon and mock (e.g. skaldskapr "poetry," also, in Icelandic law books, "libel in verse").

late 14c., "be abusive or quarrelsome," from scold (n.). Related: Scolded; scolding.