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.
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
“You should not have to wear this scarlet letter of sorts that prevents you from participating in our most basic concept of democracy,” said Sen. Raumesh Akbari, a Democrat from Memphis.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 25, 2024
It is a permanent portrait of shame — the legal system’s scarlet letter.
From New York Times ● Aug. 24, 2023
Historically, climate advocacy as a scientist has been viewed by some as akin to a scarlet letter, a move that could jeopardize a researcher’s credibility or job.
From Washington Post ● May 20, 2022
The child turned her eyes to the point indicated; and there lay the scarlet letter, so close upon the margin of the stream, that the gold embroidery was reflected in it.
From The Scarlet Letter by Foote, Mary Hallock
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.
