1
as in insulting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
a literary snob, she invariably used the derisory term "the boob tube" when referring to television
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ridiculous
so foolish or pointless as to be worthy of scornful laughter
the pawnbroker offered what I regarded as a derisory amount for the diamond ring
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of derisory
She was then remanded in a nunnery, given a derisory sentence — less than two years in jail — before being released with a presidential pardon.
—
Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2024
The state media are full of derisory commentary about the alleged hypocrisy, decadence, and even blasphemy that is supposedly on display in Paris.
—Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 Aug. 2024
There, the National Weather Service calculated the average wind speed to be a derisory 1.8 mph.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 10 Dec. 2023
Often enough beautiful can be used as a derisory adjective in this context.
—Guy Trebay, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2023
But when people invest in their own solar panels and start producing electricity, the feed in tariff pays them back a derisory amount.
—Jemma Green, Forbes, 22 Apr. 2022
The contents of his elegant Tite Street home — roughly 2,000 books, all the furnishings, even the children’s toys — were sold at a bankruptcy auction for derisory sums.
—Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2021
There’s no escaping that the current ESG qualifications of most directors and executives is derisory, and mandatory disclosures would provide the stick to increase competency.
—Paul Polman, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2021
Arsenal are seemingly the latest club to have entered the Harry Maguire saga alongside Manchester United and Manchester City, only to make a derisory transfer enquiry for the Leicester and England centre back well below the Foxes' asking price.
—SI.com, 3 July 2019
Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2024
The state media are full of derisory commentary about the alleged hypocrisy, decadence, and even blasphemy that is supposedly on display in Paris.
—Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 6 Aug. 2024
There, the National Weather Service calculated the average wind speed to be a derisory 1.8 mph.
—Martin Weil, Washington Post, 10 Dec. 2023
Often enough beautiful can be used as a derisory adjective in this context.
—Guy Trebay, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2023
But when people invest in their own solar panels and start producing electricity, the feed in tariff pays them back a derisory amount.
—Jemma Green, Forbes, 22 Apr. 2022
The contents of his elegant Tite Street home — roughly 2,000 books, all the furnishings, even the children’s toys — were sold at a bankruptcy auction for derisory sums.
—Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2021
There’s no escaping that the current ESG qualifications of most directors and executives is derisory, and mandatory disclosures would provide the stick to increase competency.
—Paul Polman, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2021
Arsenal are seemingly the latest club to have entered the Harry Maguire saga alongside Manchester United and Manchester City, only to make a derisory transfer enquiry for the Leicester and England centre back well below the Foxes' asking price.
—SI.com, 3 July 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for derisory
Adjective
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Now, however, Memrise charges $59.99 per month, which is insulting.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
16 Apr. 2025
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To compare the incident to a possible leak of a football game plan is insulting to the U.S. military members who secure and safeguard our personal freedom each and every day.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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This hate against transgender people is so ridiculous.—
John Russell,
People.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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But just a few hours southeast of the city lived a 14-year-old named Flannery O’Connor, who thought the spectacle was ridiculous.—
Ellen Wexler,
Smithsonian Magazine,
25 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
This whole exercise of proving the absence of antisemitism as a prerequisite to criticizing Israeli government policy is absurd.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
-
Still, the sexist double standards around pockets have continued to be present in absurd ways.—
Jacqui Palumbo,
CNN Money,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Meghan Markle's Netflix Backlash Meghan's Netflix show earned scornful reviews not only in the British press, long the villains of Meghan and Prince Harry's narrative, but also among U.S. outlets that previously provided glowing coverage.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
25 Mar. 2025
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The Nosotros people had returned Borja’s bribe money to him with no comment, only scornful silence, but the sting of the snub had not gone very deep.—
Charles Portis,
Harper's Magazine,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Read more The pathetic, slow-motion downfall of Barack Obama Houseguests and fish begin to smell after three days, as the saying goes.—
Aris Folley,
The Hill,
17 Apr. 2025
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Writing the most unbridled, impolite, unreasonable, pathetic rant that gives voice to unseen, unheard parts of you opens a relief valve that transfers emotional pain onto the page.—
Jessica DuLong,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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According to an ancient Greek myth, all those who had fallen in love with the young man Narcissus were met with contemptuous rejection.—
Abigayle Ward,
Hartford Courant,
8 Mar. 2025
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The president was also profoundly contemptuous of women, kept his true opposition to female suffrage carefully hidden, and allowed the suffragists who silently held banners outside the White House to be repeatedly attacked by mobs, beaten, and jailed.—
Foreign Affairs,
Foreign Affairs,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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This strategy worked for him for about 10 years—and then began to bore him silly.—
Art Spiegelman,
The Atlantic,
9 Apr. 2025
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Call it luck, fate or a silly coincidence, but 4/20 and Easter Sunday fall on the same day this year.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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This subsided with unusual speed, however, as cricket fans took instead to sharing the self-deprecatory jokes coming over the border.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
22 June 2019
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Philipps has acquired her 1-million-and-growing Instagram followers through her self-deprecatory humor, raw honesty and vulnerability.—
Sonja Haller,
USA TODAY,
11 July 2018
Cite this Entry
“Derisory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/derisory. Accessed 23 Apr. 2025.
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