Standard Lemma guide

scornful

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • General-American: /ˈskɔɹnfəl/
  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈskɔːnfəl/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɔː(ɹ)nfəl
  • CMU ARPABET: S K AO1 R N F AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous; scathing; withering.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: blistering, disrespectful, sneerful, belittling, contemptuous, contumelious, deprecative, derogative, despising, disdainful, dismissive, low, scathing, scornful, slight, slighting, sniffy, withering

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective satellite

Meaning 2

expressing extreme contempt

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: contemptuous, disdainful, insulting

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Middle English scorn Proto-Indo-European *pleh1- Proto-Indo-European *-nós Proto-Indo-European *pl̥h1nós Proto-Germanic *fullaz Proto-Germanic *-fullaz Old English -ful Middle English -ful Middle English scornful English scornful Inherited from Middle English scornful; equivalent to scorn + -ful.

Across languages

Translations

30 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: презрителен (prezritelen) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Bulgarian: пренебрежителен (prenebrežitelen) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Chinese Mandarin: 輕視的 /轻视的 (qīngshì de) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Czech: pohrdavý — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Dutch: minachtend — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Dutch: minachtende — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Finnish: ylenkatseellinen — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Finnish: ivallinen — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Finnish: halveksiva — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • French: méprisant — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • French: dédaigneux — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • German: verächtlich — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Greek: περιφρονητικός (perifronitikós) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Greek: καταφρονητικός (katafronitikós) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Italian: disprezzante — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Italian: sprezzante — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Italian: sdegnoso — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Korean: 냉소적인 (naengsojeogin) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Korean: 경멸적 (gyeongmyeoljeok) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Māori: hīkaka te ihu — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Middle English: scornful — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Persian: تحقیرآمیز (tahqir-âmiz) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Polish: pogardliwy — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Russian: презри́тельный (prezrítelʹnyj) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Russian: надме́нный (nadménnyj) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Spanish: despreciativo — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Swedish: föraktfull — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Tocharian B: erkatte — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Ukrainian: прези́рливий (prezýrlyvyj) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous
  • Ukrainian: знева́жливий (znevážlyvyj) — showing scorn or disrespect; contemptuous