vilipend
UK /ˈvɪlɪpɛnd/ · US /ˈvɪləˌpɛnd/ verb
Forms vilipends vilipending vilipended vilipendeth
- verb (transitive, dated, formal) To treat (something) as inconsequential or worthless; to despise, to look down on.
- verb (transitive, dated, formal) To express a disparaging opinion of; to slander or vilify.
Synonyms
belittle contemn misprize slight bagatellize banalize cut down de-emphasize denigrate degrade deprecate derogate disparage dispraise downplay lilliputianize make little of make nothing of minimize play down depreciate
Etymology
From Middle English vilipenden (“to treat (something) as contemptible”) [and other forms], from Old French vilipender (modern French vilipender (“to condemn, despise, revile, scorn, vilipend, vilify”)), or its etymon Latin vilipendō, from vīlis (“cheap, inexpensive; base, mean, vile, worthless”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wes- (“to buy, sell”)) + pendō (“to hang, suspend; to weigh, weigh out; (figuratively) to consider, ponder”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pend- (“to stretch”)). The English word is cognate with Italian vilipendere (“to despise, scorn, vilipend”), Portuguese vilipendiar (“to vilify”), Spanish vilipendiar (“to vilify”).
Webster’s 1913
- verb To value lightly; to depreciate; to slight; to despise.
Etymology [L. vilipendere; vilis vile + pendere to weigh, to value: cf. F. vilipender.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “vilipend”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details