ignominious
adjective
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The "-nom-" of "ignominious" comes from "nomen," the Latin word for "name" or "repute." (It's also the root of "misnomer," "nomenclature," and "nominal," among others.) The "ig-" part of the word is akin to the negative prefix in-; when joined to the root "-nom-," it indicates the namelessness that goes with shame or dishonor. To suffer an ignominious fate is to lose the opportunity to make a name for oneself or to lose one's good name. When "ignominious" was first borrowed from a French form of the word in the 15th century, it meant "disgraced" or "dishonorable." "Ignominious" continues to have such meanings, but it also has somewhat milder meanings - "embarrassing" and "humiliating."
Examples of ignominious in a Sentence
Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 24 Mar. 2025
Sutherland earned an ignominious assist on the game-winning goal early in the third period Wednesday night as the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Colorado Avalanche, 2-1, at Scotiabank Arena.
—Corey Masisak, The Denver Post, 19 Mar. 2025
Instead, that demonstration came to an ignominious end when NASA decided the troubled Boeing vehicle wasn't up to the task of transporting its crew back to Earth.
—Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 18 Mar. 2025
The spurious operation unraveled in a more ignominious way than Costanza’s.
—Michael Loria, USA TODAY, 15 Mar. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Ignominious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ignominious. Accessed 5 Apr. 2025.
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ignominious
adjective
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