(v. t.) A feeling of contempt and aversion; the regarding anything as unworthy of or beneath one; scorn.
(v. t.) That which is worthy to be disdained or regarded with contempt and aversion.
(v. t.) The state of being despised; shame.
(v. t.) To think unworthy; to deem unsuitable or unbecoming; as, to disdain to do a mean act.
(v. t.) To reject as unworthy of one's self, or as not deserving one's notice; to look with scorn upon; to scorn, as base acts, character, etc.
(v. i.) To be filled with scorn; to feel contemptuous anger; to be haughty.
Example Sentences:
(1) People praying, voicing their views and heart, were met with disdain and a level of force exceeding what was needed.
(2) Fred had to be substituted to shield him from the crowd’s disdain.
(3) It may have been like punk never ‘appened, but you caught a whiff of the movement’s scorched earth puritanism in the mocking disdain with which Smash Hits addressed rock-star hedonism.
(4) TV's Jeremy Paxman didn't even bother hiding his disdain for the introduction of weather reports to Newsnight – "It's April.
(5) It shows that we still have some way to go to end bigoted banter.” The exchange was also met with disdain on Twitter.
(6) He has frequently tested the patience of Japan's conservative sumo authorities with his disdain for the rules of engagement in the ring and his bad behaviour off it.
(7) His comic adventures are too many to relate, but it may be said that they culminate in a café of 'singing waiters' where, after a wealth of comic 'business' with the tray, he shows his disdain for articulate speech by singing a vividly explicit song in gibberish.
(8) Immigration has been used as a 21st-century incomes policy, mixing a liberal sense of free for all with a free-market disdain for clear and effective rules.
(9) Riva, the oldest nominee ever for best actress category, has a very Gallic disdain for such public adulation.
(10) "Historians will pore over his many speeches to black audiences," wrote Ta-Nahisi Coates at The Atlantic, and "they will see a president who sought to hold black people accountable for their communities, but was disdainful of those who looked at him and sought the same".
(11) Born in July 1954, Christopher Murray Paul-Huhne (his surname until he went to Oxford) has always been something of a Marmite politician, attracting both loyalty and affection, as well as brickbats and disdain.
(12) Gil Eliyahu, who stopped working for Binyamin and Sara Netanyahu two and a half years ago, is threatening to sue the couple, claiming he was treated with "humiliating" disdain.
(13) It was one of at least half a dozen such unionist experiments, with a variety of partners, which foundered on the rocks of the would-be partners' infirmity of purpose, fear, suspicion and disdain of this bizarre, arrogant, impetuous upstart.
(14) Safronkov reserved his fiercest disdain for the UK envoy, Matthew Rycroft, who had said that UK scientists had determined that sarin had been used in the Khan Sheikhun attack and called on Russia to cut ties with Assad, who Rycroft said was bringing Moscow only “shame and humiliation”.
(15) The rules extended from healthcare to the environment to workplace safety, but all were grounded in Bush's disdain for the government's role as a regulatory authority.
(16) Stevenson did not disdain the genre in which he was operating.
(17) Issues Sir Ken, on the other hand, is a professional Yorkshireman and farmer - the sort of chap who prefers to call a retail outlet a shop and treated press and City with equal disdain.
(18) The pent-up fury of the parents reflected the intensity of the violent protests that marked a dramatic week in Mexico, which has deepened the political crisis facing President Enrique Peña Nieto as he returns from a week-long trip to China and Australia, seen by many as a sign of disdain for the suffering and anger at home.
(19) What is clear now, for those for whom it was ever in doubt, is the reality of Tory values: the disdain with which they view the less fortunate and the reason why the annual cull of the impoverished through malnutrition and hypothermia is not a problem to them.
(20) Instead – spoiler alert – to the disdain of many, it opted for a more satisfying, upbeat conclusion.
Downplay
Definition:
Example Sentences:
(1) In American football, however, more than 4,500 former NFL players sued their league for downplaying the dangers of concussion, and last year there was an out-of-court settlement for around £500m.
(2) The Kuwaiti admitted openly lobbying for Bach, a breach of IOC rules, but both downplayed his influence following Bach's victory.
(3) Facebook Twitter Pinterest China dismisses Trump call with Taiwan as ‘small trick’ However, Beijing’s public response has so far been measured, with the foreign ministry lodging a “solemn representation” with Washington and the foreign minister, Wang Yi, downplaying the development as “a petty move” by Taiwan.
(4) Now that the State Department has just released a final environmental impact report on Keystone XL, which appears to downplay the threat, and greatly increases the odds that the Obama administration will approve the project, I feel I must weigh in once again.
(5) Both Egypt and Russia have downplayed suggestions that the crash is linked to terrorism and dismissed claims of responsibility by an Islamist group in Sinai.
(6) Several other roles have been mooted for Brooks, though the company downplayed suggestions that she would run Storyful, a Dublin-based social media news agency started by the former RTÉ current affairs presenter Mark Little, or manage the Sun’s digital operations.
(7) The Australian prime minister made the remark as he sought to downplay any suggestion of disagreement with Barack Obama over climate change.
(8) The Leave campaign has also sought to downplay the risks of a British exit by following the example of Norway, which has access to the EU’s single market as a member of the European Economic Area.
(9) Republicans have for months been claiming the White House was engaged in a cover-up, downplaying the role of an al-Qaida inspired group in the attack and suggesting instead the attack was mainly the result of a demonstration by a mob against an American-produced anti-Islam film.
(10) Spence advocates the gathering of brute data while denying or downplaying the epistemological value of theorizing and of interpretive understandings.
(11) But in this case Trump’s campaign did not attempt to downplay the remarks as humorous.
(12) Speaking to the media after the summit, Abbott downplayed the importance of the fund.
(13) This “hard Brexit” is favoured by some Conservatives although on Monday ratings agency Moody’s downplayed the impact , saying that while there would be a loss of business the impact would be manageable.
(14) But Barack Obama is an example of someone who deliberately downplayed and thus, transcended his race.
(15) The spokesperson confirmed that the ministry had “indirectly owned” the Chinese firm in the joint venture but downplayed its involvement and said Chen had never worked for the ministry.
(16) Without wishing to downplay their hard work, I know pupils who have achieved an A* with what I would consider to be only the most rudimentary ability in French and certainly not a true A2-level.
(17) The US president's comments appeared to be an attempt to downplay speculation that Israel was preparing to attack Iran following a report last week that the US defence secretary, Leon Panetta, believes an Israeli strike could happen this spring.
(18) The former head of Derbyshire CID told the Guardian that Clarke's plan to increase the discounted tariff for rape when assailants admitted guilt to 50%, alongside crimes like robbery and burglary, downplayed the severity of the offence, in turn inviting officers to investigate it less thoroughly.
(19) Israelis were deeply insulted by foreign media organisations which seemed to be downplaying the kidnapping, or, by describing the teenagers as "three settlers", to be putting them into a political context.
(20) This right and duty, which all editors in the world have, should not be undermined by algorithms encoded in your office in California.” “Editors cannot live with you, Mark, as a master editor.” Speaking in Rome last month, Zuckerberg addressed the question of Facebook’s role in the news media and appeared to downplay his editorial responsibilities.