as in sarcasm
an act or expression showing scorn and usually intended to hurt another's feelings
panelists on that political talk show simply exchange insults, not ideas
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to offend
to cause hurt feelings or deep resentment in
insulted their hosts by casually remarking about the outdated look of their home
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of insult
Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 27 Mar. 2026
Commentators have taken to treating gay and its synonyms as an insult.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2026
Injury may have been added to insult late in the Dallas Stars’ 2-1 loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for insult
Noun
Firing him for putting his life on the line and acting consistent with his training is no justification for firing him and an insult to every officer risking his or her life daily.
—Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 27 Mar. 2026
Commentators have taken to treating gay and its synonyms as an insult.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2026
Verb
With it, everyone wins and no one gets hurt or insulted.
—Judith Martin, Sun Sentinel, 27 Mar. 2026
Injury may have been added to insult late in the Dallas Stars’ 2-1 loss to the New York Islanders on Thursday.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for insult
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insult
Noun
-
Goldberg responded with open sarcasm and frustration.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
-
That’s a heavy dose of sarcasm for those who overreacted to Judge’s first few at-bats of a long, grueling season.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Prosecutors said messages in the group chat along with the fact that the Pawula sent the texts to Rita, Chad Salefski and other family and friends of Rita and Salefski showed they were intended to offend the two political candidates.—
Olivia Stevens,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
-
For a man behind a franchise that’s known for platforming outspoken women, Andy Cohen sure seems offended by Sarah Michelle Gellar‘s criticism of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Yet session after session, the result has been the same — agencies receive their annual appropriations, public outrage over long security lines and flight delays fades, legislation languishes and workers have no guarantees their paychecks won't stop coming again.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
No amount of outrageousness can mask the outrage.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Ramaphosa said most European countries must do more to acknowledge the indignity suffered by Africans through colonialism and consider paying reparations to their former colonies.—
Mogomotsi Magome,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Mar. 2026
-
Mostly, Stanton’s sense of her own virtues made her bristle at all the great and petty indignities that characterized her place as a woman.—
Moira Donegan,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Leonard extended his 20-point streak to 49 straight games with 27 points on 9-of-19 shooting, welcoming hand slaps from teammates after hitting his second 3-pointer late in the game.—
Janis Carr,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Emma Peschel beat the first-period buzzer with a slap shot to make it 4-0 and Sara Swiderski sent a shot from the blue line that deflected into the goal in the third.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Bovino flailed back at every affront instead of focusing on his mission, not realizing his recklessness was eroding public support for his cause and threatening it altogether.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Any tension between them, though, stems from personal affronts, while their ideological differences exist as a largely unremarked upon undercurrent.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Tensions rose, neighbors said, to the point that King was heard at times swearing at Kirsten Wells as well as others using vulgar epithets.—
Laura Bauer,
Kansas City Star,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The person who shouted the epithet was John Davidson, an activist with Tourette syndrome, who removed himself from the room and later apologized, as did BAFTA and BBC, the show’s broadcaster, which failed to edit out the slur during the broadcast.—
G. Allen Johnson,
San Francisco Chronicle,
1 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Insult.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insult. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
