disdainfully

American  

[dis-deyn-fuh-lee] / dɪsˈdeɪn fə li /

adverb

1. in a way that shows contempt or scorn.

   Once disdainfully regarded as mosquito-infested swamps, wetlands today are appreciated for providing critical wildlife habitat, assisting with water purification, and helping to store water during storms and floods.

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Etymology

Origin of disdainfully

disdainful ( def. ) + -ly

Explanation

When you do something disdainfully, you do it with disapproval or contempt. You might look disdainfully at an airplane passenger who's yelling at his young son. When you act disdainfully toward someone, you're expressing your lack of respect — either for the person himself, or what he's doing. If your grandmother disapproves of just about everyone she meets, she'll probably glance disdainfully at your friends when they show up in their loud car to pick you up. The Old French root of disdainfully is desdeignier, "scorn, refuse, or repudiate," from des, "do the opposite of," and deignier, "treat with respect."

Example Sentences

The Telegraph reported lyrics from the canticle written by a chorister included "Lord, how long shall the ungodly triumph?" and "how long shall all wicked doers speak so disdainfully?"

From BBC • Sep. 11, 2025

Simberg also referred disdainfully to a 2011 investigation by the National Science Foundation’s inspector general, which exonerated Mann, writing that it relied on information from Penn State and therefore was “not truly independent.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 13, 2024

Pink remains associated with femininity to this day—but in recent decades, groups once disdainfully branded with the color have made moves to reclaim it.

From National Geographic • Jul. 21, 2023

Channeling her pain into scorn, Mariche speaks disdainfully not only to the male schoolteacher enlisted to take notes of the session, but also to other survivors.

From Washington Post • Jan. 17, 2023

“But I don’t believe that a revolution is pending. Revolutions come through concrete historical processes ...” “You’re an intellectual,” he said, smiling disdainfully.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

Related Words

• skeptically
• suspiciously