1
as in contemptuous
feeling or showing open dislike for someone or something regarded as undeserving of respect or concern
a disdainful attitude toward people who work as waiters and waitresses
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in proud
having or displaying feelings of scorn for what is regarded as beneath oneself
disdainful of manual labor of any kind
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
disdainful remarks regarding the cheap clothes that the local people were wearing
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disdainful
Many documentarians are disdainful of such performances, and Burns avoided working with them on The Civil War.
—
Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 23 Oct. 2025
Talking about the huddle, one of his teammates just walked off the field inexplicably (Governor Kugler) taking early retirement and two others (Waller and Bowman) are openly disdainful of his play calling.
—Bob Haber, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2025
The dissenting members represent a small contingency disdainful of a union president who has enjoyed widespread popularity for much of his tenure.
—Liam Rappleye, Freep.com, 22 July 2025
For decades, the Academy seemed to keep Cruise at a vaguely disdainful distance, dismissing him as more of an action figure than a serious ack-TOOR.
—Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for disdainful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disdainful
Adjective
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Thompson, meanwhile, savors every contemptuous glare and hateful retort Anna regularly supplies.—
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All of these flaws are conveniently overlooked by the purveyors of all of these instruments and done so in a way that is contemptuous of those who would contest it or even quibble with it.—
Adjective
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South Florida sports history is proud to have been the host for Crump’s barrier-busting history.—
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The Big Ten is marching into the heart of Southern football with a proud swagger, daring any conference to challenge its claim as the power to beat in the College Football Playoff.—
Adjective
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Despite that criticism, Trump doubled down on his scornful comments about Reiner at a press conference on Monday.—
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Loyal to the Emperor, scornful of the aristocracy, and sympathetic to the peasants’ desire for liberation, if not their bloodlust, he is torn between medieval chivalry and modern self-preservation.—
Adjective
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This version of Ryan was arrogant, unable to conceal pride in his accomplishment.—
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So long as that situation continues, the 43-year-old’s allegedly arrogant and stand-offish treatment of his players will not worry the club hierarchy too much.—
Adjective
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Many researchers cite those exact words as insulting or wrong when asked about their own terminations.—
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With two toddlers and a 10-hour workday for her husband, the advice was more insulting than helpful.—
Adjective
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What our country is doing is abhorrent and untenable.—
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What an abhorrent signing this has turned out to be.—
Adjective
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But that poem is no smug cliché.—
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Marcello is looking especially smug and evil in this scene for reasons unclear.—
Adjective
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The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have strong antivirus software installed on all your devices.—
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And at the heart of the series was the parasitic dynamic between Pine and his delightfully malicious foe, an arms dealer named Richard Onslow Roper (Hugh Laurie).—
Cite this Entry
“Disdainful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disdainful. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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