scarlet letter
noun
: a scarlet A worn as a punitive mark of adultery
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web The goal is to help those in need, not to brand people with some sort of a scarlet letter that could then trigger them to lash out. 
Byjohn Cohen, ABC News, 7 July 2022 The threat posed by the sous vide machine—which, after one failed attempt, left chard juice fanned across my chest like blood splatter for the rest of service, a scarlet letter in bright, unmistakable green. Caitlin Raux Gunther, Bon Appétit, 23 Feb. 2022 Like a Hawthorne character forever branded — and cursed — with a birthmark, a black veil or a scarlet letter, Pietro is haunted by the dread that his ugly personal truth will come out. Steven G. Kellman, Los Angeles Times, 8 Nov. 2021 Being a divorcée cuts both ways on Lynn's classic takedown of the unfair double standards for women who dare to wear the scarlet letter of singledom. Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 14 Sep. 2021 But unvaccinated workers like Mr. Taranto fear that any company policy that identifies them is like a scarlet letter on their chests. New York Times, 7 Aug. 2021 Unvaccinated players also have to wear a scarlet letter inside their practice facilities. BostonGlobe.com, 23 July 2021 But Arikan, a Republican representing Harford and Baltimore counties, called the practice is discriminatory, with the masks serving as a scarlet letter of sorts. S. Wayne Carter Jr., baltimoresun.com, 24 May 2021 Back in that time, the divorcée is like the scarlet letter. Jeff Conway, Forbes, 12 Apr. 2021 See More
Byjohn Cohen, ABC News, 7 July 2022 The threat posed by the sous vide machine—which, after one failed attempt, left chard juice fanned across my chest like blood splatter for the rest of service, a scarlet letter in bright, unmistakable green. Caitlin Raux Gunther, Bon Appétit, 23 Feb. 2022 Like a Hawthorne character forever branded — and cursed — with a birthmark, a black veil or a scarlet letter, Pietro is haunted by the dread that his ugly personal truth will come out. Steven G. Kellman, Los Angeles Times, 8 Nov. 2021 Being a divorcée cuts both ways on Lynn's classic takedown of the unfair double standards for women who dare to wear the scarlet letter of singledom. Leah Greenblatt, EW.com, 14 Sep. 2021 But unvaccinated workers like Mr. Taranto fear that any company policy that identifies them is like a scarlet letter on their chests. New York Times, 7 Aug. 2021 Unvaccinated players also have to wear a scarlet letter inside their practice facilities. BostonGlobe.com, 23 July 2021 But Arikan, a Republican representing Harford and Baltimore counties, called the practice is discriminatory, with the masks serving as a scarlet letter of sorts. S. Wayne Carter Jr., baltimoresun.com, 24 May 2021 Back in that time, the divorcée is like the scarlet letter. Jeff Conway, Forbes, 12 Apr. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
from such a letter in the novel The Scarlet Letter (1850) by Nathaniel Hawthorne
First Known Use
1850, in the meaning defined above