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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary in·sult
ETYMOLOGY Middle French or Latin; Middle French insulter,from Latin insultare, literally, to spring upon, from in- + saltare to leap — more at saltation DATE 1540 intransitive verb archaic : to behave with pride or arrogance : vaunt transitive verb : to treat with insolence, indignity, or contempt : affront ; also : to affect offensively or damagingly doggerel that insults the reader's intelligence Synonyms: see offend • in·sult·er noun
DATE 1671 1. a gross indignity 2. injury to the body or one of its parts; also : something that causes or has a potential for causing such insult pollution and other environmental insults English Etymology insult insult (v.) c.1570, "triumph over in an arrogant way," from L.insultare "to assail, to leap upon" (already used by Cicero in sense of "insult, scoff at, revile"), freq. of insilire "leap at or upon," from in- "on, at" + salire "to leap" (see salient). Sense of "to verbally abuse, affront, assail with disrespect" is from 1620. The noun is recorded 1603 in the sense of "attack;" 1671 as "an act of insulting." To add insult to injury translates L. injuriæ contumeliam addere. Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7 ☞ insult in·sult verb/ in5sQlt / [VN] to say or do sth that offends sb 辱骂；侮辱；冒犯: I have never been so insulted in my life! 我一生中从未被如此侮辱过！ She felt insulted by the low offer. 那么低的出价使她觉得受到了侮辱。 noun / 5insQlt / ~ (to sb / sth) a remark or an action that is said or done in order to offend sb 辱骂；侮辱；冒犯: The crowd were shouting insults at the police. 群众大声辱骂着警察。 His comments were seen as an insult to the president. 他的评论被看成是对主席的冒犯。 The questions were an insult to our intelligence (= too easy). 那些问题(简单得)有辱我们的智慧。 IDIOMS ⇨ see add Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English insult noun ADJ. bad, terrible one of the worst insults you can throw at somebody | ultimate Whatever you do, don't call a ‘railway enthusiast’ a trainspotter?it's the ultimate insult. | calculated, deliberate | personal VERB + INSULT hurl, offer (literary), shout, throw They were hurling insults at the police. The king is unlikely to forgive the insult offered to his ambassador. | mean sth as I don't mean this as an insult, but I think the team would play better without you. | take sth as I meant it as a bit of constructive advice, but he took it as a personal insult | endure, suffer Foreigners have to suffer constant insults from the local population. | exchange, trade The two groups of fans exchanged insults. INSULT + VERB fly Insults were flying back and forth. PREP. ~ to It was an insult to his wife. PHRASES add insult to injury Only 300 people came to the match and to add insult to injury (= to make things worse), the floodlights went out during the second half. | an insult to your intelligence The questions were a real insult to our intelligence (= because they were too easy). Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus-11th Edition n. Function: verb Synonyms: OFFEND 3, affront, outrage Related Words: abase, debase, degrade, humble, humiliate; fleer, flout, gibe, gird, jeer, scoff, sneer; deride, mock, ridicule, taunt; rump Contrasted Words: admire, esteem, respect Antonyms: honor n. Function: noun Synonyms: AFFRONT , contumely, despite, indignity, slap Related Words: abuse, invective, obloquy, vituperation; disgrace, ignominy, opprobrium, shame; disdainfulness, insolence, superciliousness; contempt, disdain, scorn; unpleasantry Contrasted Words: deference, homage, honor, obeisance, reverence Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged in·sult I. \ə̇nˈsəlt\ verb (-ed/-ing/-s) Etymology: Middle French or Latin; Middle French insulter, from Latin insultare, literally, to spring upon, leap, from in- in- (II) + -sultare (from saltare to leap) — more at saltant intransitive verb 1. archaic : to behave with pride or insolence : display arrogance or contempt : exult or boast usually insolently or contemptuously : triumph , vaunt 2. obsolete : to make an attack or assault transitive verb 1. a. : to treat with insolence, indignity, or contempt by word or action : affront wantonly < his impertinences insulted his sister's guests > b. : to make little of : affect offensively or depreciatively < insulted the traditions of the sea by ordering “right” and “left” to be substituted … for “starboard” and “port” — Bruce Bliven b. 1889 > < editorial slovenliness that insults the reader's mind > 2. obsolete : to make an attack on : assault , assail ; especially : to make a sudden military attack on without the usual preliminaries or formalitiesSynonyms: see offend II. \ˈinˌsəlt\ noun (-s) Etymology: Middle French or Late Latin; Middle French insult, insulte, from Late Latin insultus, probably from Latin in- in- (II) + -sultus (from saltus leap) (probably influenced by Latin insultare to insult, spring upon); akin to Latin salire to leap — more at sally 1. archaic : an act of attacking : onset , attack 2. : a gross indignity offered to another either by word or act : an act or speech of insolence or contempt < his words were a studied insult > < such an offer was an insult to our intelligence > 3. : damage or an instance of injury to the body or one of its parts < repeated acute vascular insults > < any insult to the constitution of a patient suffering from active tuberculosis — Journal American Medical Association > also : an agent that produces such an insult < a thermal insult > < damage resulting from malnutritional insults > Synonyms: see affront |
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