despicable

[ des-pi-kuh-buhl, dih-spik-uh- ]
See synonyms for despicable on Thesaurus.com
adjective
  1. deserving to be despised, or regarded with distaste, disgust, or disdain; contemptible: He was a mean, despicable man, who treated his wife and children badly.

Origin of despicable

1
1545–55; <Late Latin dēspicābilis, equivalent to Latin dēspic(ārī) to despise or dēspic(ere) to look down (dē-de- + -spic- look, combining form of specere) + -ābilis-able

Other words for despicable

Opposites for despicable

Other words from despicable

  • des·pi·ca·bil·i·ty, des·pi·ca·ble·ness, noun
  • des·pi·ca·bly, adverb

Words Nearby despicable

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use despicable in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for despicable

despicable

/ (dɪˈspɪkəbəl, ˈdɛspɪk-) /


adjective
  1. worthy of being despised; contemptible; mean

Origin of despicable

1
C16: from Late Latin dēspicābilis, from dēspicārī to disdain; compare despise

Derived forms of despicable

  • despicability or despicableness, noun
  • despicably, adverb

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