insulting

1 of 2

adjective

in·​sult·​ing in-ˈsəl-tiŋ 

: giving or intended to give offense : being or containing an insult (see insult entry 2 sense 1)

Without the wit, of course, such sentiments would be construed as deeply insulting …

—The American Scholar

… pasted insulting bumper stickers on their vehicles …

—James A. Michener

… considered the proposal so impracticable as to be insulting.

—Alice Adams

The book is "dumbed down" to an almost insulting level.

—Joel Bangilan

insultingly

in-ˈsəl-tiŋ-lē 

adverb

But always his triumphs are the triumphs of a highly sensitive man: a man must feel insults before he can so insultingly and splendidly avenge them.

—G. K. Chesterton

He is a gifted preacher, fashioning sermons that are neither inaccessibly erudite nor insultingly shallow.

—Kevin Sack

insulting

2 of 2

present participle of insult entry 1

Examples of insulting in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Trump’s orders are insulting to state and local officials, but especially to the Marines. —Tom Zirpoli, Baltimore Sun, 17 June 2025

And to see the Russians playing a key role in the European Parliament is insulting to us and our struggle. —Isabel Van Brugen, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 June 2025

To make matters worse for the 46-year-old politician, the Toronto superstar shared his insulting message on his Instagram story. —Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 16 June 2025

And that isn’t meant to be insulting, but rather factual: Cameron is the first St. Joseph native to reach the major leagues since 1981, per Baseball Reference. —Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 4 June 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1616, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for insulting

• consulting
• exulting
• resulting