Definition of 'insult'

Word Frequency

insult

Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense insults, present participle insulting , past tense, past participle insulted pronunciation note: The verb is pronounced (ɪnsʌlt ). The noun is pronounced (ɪnsʌlt ).

1. verb

If someone insults you, they say or do something that is rude or offensive.

I did not mean to insult you. [VERB noun]

Buchanan said he was insulted by the judge's remarks. [VERB noun]

Synonyms: offend, abuse, injure, wound More Synonyms of insult

insulted adjective [usually verb-link ADJECTIVE]

I would be a bit insulted if he said anything like that.

2. countable noun

An insult is a rude remark, or something a person says or does which insults you.

Their behaviour was an insult to the people they represent. [+ to]

The prison Governor criticised some of his officers who shouted insults at prisoners on the roof.

Synonyms: offence, slight, outrage, snub More Synonyms of insult

to add insult to injury

More Synonyms of insult

Video: pronunciation of 'insult'

Word Frequency

insult in British

verb (ɪnˈsʌlt ) (transitive)

to treat, mention, or speak to rudely; offend; affront

2. obsolete

to assault; attack

noun (ˈɪnsʌlt )

an offensive or contemptuous remark or action; affront; slight

a person or thing producing the effect of an affront

some television is an insult to intelligence

5. medicine

an injury or trauma

6. add insult to injury

Derived forms

insulter (inˈsulter)

noun

Word origin of 'insult'

C16: from Latin insultāre to jump upon, from in-2 + saltāre to jump

Word Frequency

insult in American

(ɪnˈsʌlt ; insultˈ; for n. ˈɪnˌsʌlt ; inˈsultˌ)

verb transitive

to treat or speak to with scorn, insolence, or great disrespect; subject to treatment, a remark, etc. that hurts or is meant to hurt the feelings or pride

2. Obsolete

to attack; assail

verb intransitive

3. Archaic

to behave arrogantly

noun

an insulting act, remark, etc.; affront; indignity

5. Archaic

an attack; assault

6. Medicine

damage or injury to tissues or organs of the body

anything that causes this

SIMILAR WORDS: ofˈfend

Derived forms

insulter (inˈsulter)

noun

insulting (inˈsulting)

adjective

insultingly (inˈsultingly)

adverb

Word origin of 'insult'

MFr insulter < L insultare, to leap upon, scoff at, insult < in-, in, on + saltare, freq. of salire, to leap: see salient

Example sentences containing 'insult'

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Beyond a certain point such platitudes insults voters' intelligence. Times, Sunday Times (2016)Potentially offensive if used in a modern context to insult German people. Times, Sunday Times (2016)Do not insult our intelligence. Times, Sunday Times (2016)A recent experiment asked prisoners to hurl his insults at guards, to help them express themselves and empower them. Times, Sunday Times (2016)It added:'Our members have the right to do their job in an environment free of unjustified and insulting attacks. Times, Sunday Times (2016)I watched as the militias picked out their victims, swearing at them, insulting their mothers and hurling sectarian insults. Times, Sunday Times (2016)You would not expect people to insult you on the way to the train. The Sun (2015)What a grotesque and ridiculous insult to our intelligence services. The Sun (2016)It is no insult to say that she does not write like an academic. Times, Sunday Times (2016)Two men were arrested for insulting behaviour after the flowers were set alight. The Sun (2010)An engineer was heard to mutter something insulting. The Times Literary Supplement (2010)He was evidently not offended by the insult directed toward his friend. George Eliot Daniel Deronda (1876)What adds insult to injury is the fact that absolute return funds are basically pretty useless. Times, Sunday Times (2010)It would have been the final insult if he got what he wanted. The Sun (2013)What an insult to people struggling to make ends meet. The Sun (2008)This is an insult to our intelligence. The Sun (2014)And then because of the injustice he felt over a booking that added insult to injury. The Sun (2012)It is a a final insult to the families of the true victims. The Sun (2014)Thousands of other disabled people are routinely insulted in public. The Sun (2011)The whole thing was an insult to the intelligence. Times, Sunday Times (2013)It seems clear that he can understand these feelings and not experience them as an insult or an attack. Times, Sunday Times (2015)It is not meant as an insult to say that he does not think about what he is doing. Times, Sunday Times (2015)Each took a lead from the behaviour of his peers and soon it became open season for hurling insults at the royals. Deborah Cadbury THE LOST KING OF FRANCE: Revolution, Revenge and the Search for Louis XVII (2002)You had to be fun, insult him a bit. Times, Sunday Times (2013)That's a bit of an insult. Times, Sunday Times (2007)Avoid insulting or attacking them. Bachmann, Susan (editor) & Barth, Melinda Between Worlds: A Reader, Rhetoric and Handbook (1995)It is not an insult to say that he was not the man most spectators were cheering for as the Open reached its climax yesterday. Times, Sunday Times (2009)