denigrative

adjective

Definition of denigrativenext
as in insulting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value thanked her for the gift and then added the denigrative aside, "Not that it's anything special!"

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for denigrative
  1. insulting
  2. malicious
  3. critical
  4. degrading
  5. abusive
  6. demeaning
  7. contemptuous
  8. derogatory
Adjective
  • Considering there were only 33 appearances this past season, such Heat prudence hardly could be viewed as insulting.
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 20 June 2026
  • What Florence has been doing is consistent and insulting.
    — Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 19 June 2026
Definition of insulting
Adjective
  • According to the Macomb County Prosecutor's Office, 37-year-old Adam Mazur-Baker was arraigned Tuesday on one count of using a computer to commit a crime and one count of malicious use of telecommunications services.
    — DeJanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 2 July 2026
  • This command executes malicious code inside the AppleScript directly.
    — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 2 July 2026
Definition of malicious
Adjective
  • The unorthodox midterm convention comes as Democrats continue to poll stronger than Republicans ahead of November's critical elections.
    — Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 1 July 2026
  • Kennard could have provided a critical floor-spacing piece around Doncic, who thrives when surrounded by lob-catching centers, athletic wings and knockdown shooters.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
Definition of critical
Adjective
  • No one should be subject to listening to the most degrading and profane words that now seem popular with some people.
    — Judith Martin, Mercury News, 16 June 2026
  • According to the company, the electronic attack variant is intended to provide non-kinetic effects on the battlefield by disrupting and degrading enemy sensors and reconnaissance networks.
    — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 14 June 2026
Definition of degrading
Adjective
  • Aggression is the norm A common misconception is that aggression needs to be physical before it’s considered abusive, but that’s not always the case.
    — Mark Travers, CNBC, 5 July 2026
  • The union did not give specific examples of abusive incidents.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 4 July 2026
Definition of abusive
Adjective
  • This is demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls, and denies women and girls the equal opportunity to participate and excel in competitive sports.
    — Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 27 June 2026
  • Some women who filed lawsuits against Ortega reported they had been confused about whether demeaning or uncomfortable actions the doctor engaged in during exams was within the bounds of necessary medical behavior.
    — Emily Hoerner, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2026
Definition of demeaning
Adjective
  • The man didn’t catch Serena’s contemptuous expression, however, too busy peeling bills from a money clip and pressing them into his date’s hand.
    — Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 30 June 2026
  • The fantasy of transforming a cold or contemptuous man through the sheer force of one’s love has caused real harm, and the critique of it is warranted.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 29 June 2026
Definition of contemptuous
Adjective
  • The law, passed in 2024, prohibits K-12 public schools from using any derogatory Native American term for athletic team mascots, names or nicknames.
    — Alula Alderson, Sacbee.com, 2 July 2026
  • For one thing, Aniya never said anything derogatory about KC, which even the guys must grumpily acknowledge to be true.
    — Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 1 July 2026
Definition of derogatory
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

denigrations
denigrative
denigrator
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Denigrative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/denigrative. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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