Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To view or treat with contempt; despise.
  • transitive verb To speak ill of; disparage.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To express a disparaging or moan opinion of; slander; vilify; treat slightingly or contemptuously.
  • To express disparaging opinions of a person; uso vilification.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To value lightly; to depreciate; to slight; to despise.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb To despise
  • verb To express a disparaging opinion of; to slander or vilify.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb belittle

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English vilipenden, from Old French vilipender, from Latin vīlipendere : vīlis, worthless; see wes- in Indo-European roots + pendere, to consider, weigh; see (s)pen- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English vilipenden, from Old French vilipender, from Latin vilipendere, from vilis ("worthless") + pendere ("to consider, weigh").

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Examples

  • The malison of her muliebrity allows niddering males opportunity for oppugnant vilipend.

    Save the language! « Write Anything 2008

  • With mansuetude compossible with my muliebrity, I condemn those niddering, olid morons who, in caliginosity of understanding, vilipend our English by attempting to exuviate words for which they cannot see any present custom.

    A malison on the poor of spirit. Angry Professor 2008

  • With mansuetude compossible with my muliebrity, I condemn those niddering, olid morons who, in caliginosity of understanding, vilipend our English by attempting to exuviate words for which they cannot see any present custom.

    Archive 2008-10-01 Angry Professor 2008

  • ‘And yet, sir, I cannot but marvel that you, Colonel, whom I noted to have so much of the amor patritz when we met in Edinburgh as even to vilipend other countries, should have chosen to establish your Lares, or household gods, procul a patrice finibus, and in a manner to expatriate yourself.’

    Waverley 2004

  • I believe to contain more food to maintain the fibre of the soul for right living and high thinking than all pagan literature together, though I would by no means vilipend the study of the classicks.

    The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 09, No. 51, January, 1862 Various

  • He would be a thin spirit who should gain a lady's friendly regard, and then vilipend because she knew no better, or could not choose.

    Earthwork out of Tuscany Being Impressions and Translations of Maurice Hewlett Maurice Hewlett 1892

  • The fact that to the eighteenth century belong the subjects of more than half of these thirty volumes, is a proof of the fascination of the period for an author who has never ceased to vilipend it.

    Critical Miscellanies, Vol. I Essay 2: Carlyle John Morley 1880

  • Edinburgh, as even to vilipend other countries, should have chosen to establish your Lares, or household gods, _procul a patri finibus, _ and in a manner to expatriate yourself. ''

    The Waverley 1877

  • This general admonition being addressed to the team at large, the zagal descended to details, and proceeded to vilipend the galloping beasts separately, beginning with the leader.

    Castilian Days John Hay 1870

  • She will seize her opportunity to vilipend me, and I shall be condemned by the kind of court-martial which hurries over the forms of

    Complete Project Gutenberg Works of George Meredith George Meredith 1868

Comments

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  • 1. To treat someone with contempt.

    2. To disparage.

    December 3, 2007

  • To those who will beg to be friend

    The goblin may well condescend.

    A different matter

    Are those who won’t flatter

    And these he is pleased to vilipend.

    June 12, 2018