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单词 contemptible
释义
contemptible
(once / 1152 pages)
adj

Someone or something that's contemptible receives harsh judgment and deserves it. Your desire to bring to justice the contemptible coward who stole your last chocolate bar seemed noble, until you realized you'd eaten it the night before.
Contemptible means "worthy of contempt," and is one of several words of its kind that end with -ible rather than -able, which would mean something more like "capable of contempt," (and isn't a word). You could remember that “I find it contemptible!” begins with “I.” If you don't, some will consider your spelling errors to be minor offenses, while others will declare them . . . contemptible!
CHOOSE YOUR WORDS
contemptible / contemptuous

Something contemptible is worthy of scorn, like the contemptible jerk who's mean to your sister; but contemptuous is full of it, like the contemptuous look you give that guy as he speeds away in his gas guzzler.

Both words turn contempt into an adjective. Contempt is a noun that describes the feeling that someone is beneath you or the state of being despised. (There's a legal meaning of contempt, but that's a question for another day!)

The -ible ending means "able to." Contemptible, then, means "able to be scorned, worthy of contempt." It refers to the person or thing the contempt is aimed at:

The contemptible crime of stealing a charity box resulted in a man being remanded in custody at Lerwick Sheriff Court today. (Shetland Times)

If familiarity truly breeds contempt, then money is the most contemptible thing in our lives. (Hamptons.com)

The educated classes are being swept along in the contemptible struggle for wealth. (Friedrich Nietzsche)

The –ous ending means "full of," so contemptuous means "full of contempt, showing scorn." It refers to the person or thing showing the scorn, like that contemptuous glare you gave that mean kid who dumped your sister, or in these examples:

Mr. Beck is, of course, free to be as contemptuous towards the president as he wants to be, but officers in the United States military are not. (Huffington Post)

Both men are now dismissive, even contemptuous, of each other's competence. (New York Times)

The reporter, gathering his wits, gave a contemptuous laugh. (Herman Landon)

Remember, then, if something is able to be scorned, it is contemptible. If someone or something is full of contempt, it is contemptuous. That contemptible thug made you feel contemptuous.

WORD FAMILY
contemptible: contemptibility, contemptiblest, contemptibly+/contemptibility: contemptibilities
USAGE EXAMPLES
Hamilton was no apologist for Jefferson, whose politics were “tinctured with fanaticism,” and who was “a contemptible hypocrite.”
Washington Post(Dec 30, 2016)
What kind of contemptible individual mixes horror with vindication?
The Guardian(Dec 20, 2016)
The D.C. attorney general’s office devoted every means and tax dollar at its disposal to defend contemptible D.C. bureaucrats and ethically challenged politicians.
Washington Post(Nov 25, 2016)
adj deserving of contempt or scorn
Syn|Ant
abject, low, low-down, miserable, scummy, scurvy
of the most contemptible kind
bastardly, mean
of no value or worth
pathetic, pitiable, pitiful
inspiring mixed contempt and pity
ignoble
completely lacking nobility in character or quality or purpose
unworthy
lacking in value or merit
estimable
deserving of respect or high regard
admirable
deserving of the highest esteem or admiration
worthy
having worth or merit or value; being honorable or admirable
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更新时间:2025/3/23 16:22:37