scorn

[ skawrn ]

noun

1. open or unqualified contempt; disdain:

   His face and attitude showed the scorn he felt.

   Synonyms: contumely

2. an object of derision or contempt.
3. a derisive or contemptuous action or speech.

   Antonyms: praise

verb (used with object)

1. to treat or regard with contempt or disdain:

   They scorned the old beggar.

   Synonyms: detest, despise, contemn, disdain

2. to reject, refuse, or ignore with contempt or disdain:

   She scorned my help.

verb (used without object)

1. to mock; jeer.

scorn

/ skɔːn /

noun

1. open contempt or disdain for a person or thing; derision
2. an object of contempt or derision
3. archaic.
   an act or expression signifying contempt

verb

1. to treat with contempt or derision
2. tr to reject with contempt

Derived Forms

• ˈscornfully, adverb
• ˈscornfulness, noun
• ˈscornful, adjective
• ˈscorner, noun

Other Words From

• scorn·er noun
• scorn·ing·ly adverb
• out·scorn verb (used with object)
• self-scorn noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of scorn¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; (noun) Middle English scorn, scarn, from Old French escarn, from Germanic (compare obsolete Dutch schern “mockery, trickery”); (verb) Middle English skarnen, sc(h)ornen, from Old French escharnir, eschernir, ultimately from Germanic

Word History and Origins

Origin of scorn¹

C12 schornen, from Old French escharnir, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German scerōn to behave rowdily, obsolete Dutch schern mockery

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. laugh to scorn, to ridicule; deride:

   Many of his sophisticated listeners laughed him to scorn.

Synonym Study

See contempt.

Example Sentences

In the seventeenth century, Thomas Hobbes pegged laughter as the companion of scorn.

From Salon

His brash personality has earned him the respect and scorn of his co-workers in equal measures.

From Los Angeles Times

But the grid has attracted scorn from statisticians.

From BBC

His characterisation of one such encounter as a "sleepy cuddle" drew particular scorn from his critics.

From BBC

He wrote of a childhood in which he learned to scorn society and its codes, concluding that “you got away with anything you were smart enough to get away with.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• derision
• disdain
• mockery
• ridicule
• sarcasm
• sneer