outrage

1 of 2

noun

out·​rage ˈau̇t-ˌrāj 

1

: an act of violence or brutality

arranged outrages and assassinations

—Anthony West

2

a

: injury, insult

do no outrages on silly women or poor passengers

—William Shakespeare

b

: an act that violates accepted standards of behavior or taste

an outrage alike against decency and dignity

—John Buchan

3

: the anger and resentment aroused by injury or insult

Many people expressed outrage at the court's decision.

outrage

2 of 2

verb

outraged; outraging

transitive verb

1

a

: rape

b

: to violate the standards or principles of

he has outraged respectability past endurance

—John Braine

2

: to arouse anger or resentment in usually by some grave offense

was outraged by the accusation

Synonyms

Noun

• affront
• barb
• brickbat
• cut
• dart
• dig
• dis [slang]
• diss
• epithet
• gird
• indignity
• insult
• name
• offense
• offence
• personality
• poke
• put-down
• sarcasm
• slap
• slight
• slur

Verb

• affront
• dis [slang]
• diss
• disrespect
• insult
• offend
• slap
• slight
• wound

Choose the Right Synonym for outrage

offend, outrage, affront, insult mean to cause hurt feelings or deep resentment.

offend need not imply an intentional hurting but it may indicate merely a violation of the victim's sense of what is proper or fitting.

hoped that my remarks had not offended her

outrage implies offending beyond endurance and calling forth extreme feelings.

outraged by their accusations

affront implies treating with deliberate rudeness or contemptuous indifference to courtesy.

deeply affronted by his callousness

insult suggests deliberately causing humiliation, hurt pride, or shame.

insulted every guest at the party

Examples of outrage in a Sentence

Noun

Many people expressed outrage at the court's decision.

Public outrage over the scandal was great.

The rule is an outrage against women.

This is an outrage! I won't allow this kind of behavior to continue.

Verb

His comments outraged nearly everyone in the room.

the spiteful comment outraged her so much that she's still holding a grudge

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The decision, tied to former President Donald Trump’s executive order dismantling DEI programs in federal agencies, sparked widespread outrage from historians, civil rights advocates and the public alike. —Essence, 28 Jan. 2025

President Donald Trump's border czar, Tom Homan, responded to the viral video of actress and singer Selena Gomez expressing outrage over deportations on Monday. —Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025

Verb

The tone between the two sites was different, with Bluesky users outraged, and X users seeming rather gleeful about the omission. —John Yoo and John Shu, Newsweek, 23 Jan. 2025

The blizzard of activity is designed to keep his supporters fighting, his critics outraged and the news media churning. —Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 22 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French utrage, outrage insult, excess, from outre, utre beyond, from Latin ultra — more at ultra-

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1590, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

outrage

1 of 2 noun

out·​rage ˈau̇t-ˌrāj 

1

: a violent or brutal act

2

: an act that hurts someone or shows disrespect for a person's feelings

3

: the angry feelings caused by injury or insult

outrage

2 of 2 verb

outraged; outraging

1

: to cause to suffer violent injury or abuse

2

: to cause to feel anger or resentment

Etymology

Noun

from early French outrage "an act of violence or brutality" from outre "beyond" (from Latin ultra "beyond") and -age "action"

Legal Definition

outrage

noun

out·​rage ˈau̇t-ˌrāj 

1

: a deeply offensive or violent act

2

: the tort of intentionally inflicting emotional distress