flagitious
Americanadjective
-
shamefully wicked, as persons, actions, or times.
-
heinous or flagrant, as a crime; infamous.
adjective
Other Word Forms
- flagitiously adverb
- flagitiousness noun
- nonflagitious adjective
- nonflagitiously adverb
- nonflagitiousness noun
- unflagitious adjective
Etymology
Origin of flagitious
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English flagicious, from Latin flāgitiōsus, equivalent to flāgiti(um) “shame, scandal” + -ōsus -ous
Explanation
Flagitious is a fancy and forceful word for "wicked and nasty." As sheriff, it's up to you to bring the flagitious outlaws to justice. Remember that flagitious has three syllables and the "t" is pronounced like "sh" (similar to "ambitious"). Use flagitious when you want to emphasize the extremely brutal nature of a crime or other bad action. The crime scene photos showed the results of actions so flagitious you could not bear to look at them.
Vocabulary lists containing flagitious
Quiz yourself on these words spoken by the man at the center of the "Laurel" / "Yanny" craze!
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Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
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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.
To applaud the sadists, voyeurs and media manipulators masquerading as directors, actors and writers is as misguided as were the lives of that flagitious couple.
From Time Magazine Archive
Four months more brought him to the end of his flagitious career.
From Historic Tales, Volume 11 (of 15) The Romance of Reality by Morris, Charles
Hallam indeed has said: "We continually find a more flagitious and undisguised abandonment of moral rules for the sake of some idol of a general principle than can be imputed to The Prince of Machiavel."
From The History of Freedom by Acton, John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton, Baron
Swear that you will never, on any condition, for any boon, aid him in his flagitious enterprise; that you will thwart, and resist, and combat it to the utmost.
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 62, No. 383, September 1847 by Various
What is he then, who doth not contend for virtue with the good but to exceed the most flagitious in vices?
From A Hind Let Loose Or, An Historical Representation of the Testimonies of the Church of Scotland for the Interest of Christ. With the True State Thereof in All Its Periods by Shields, Alexander
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.
