opprobrium

noun

ə-ˈprō-brē-əm How to pronounce opprobrium (audio)
Definition of opprobriumnext
1
as in scandal
a cause of shame saw no reason why "secretary" should suddenly become a term of opprobrium among the politically correct

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2
as in disgrace
the state of having lost the esteem of others the opprobrium that was long attached to the convicted embezzler's name

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of opprobrium Govan and Zumthor, who until now has never built a building in the US, inspired years of pearl clutching in Los Angeles over the development—one art critic even earned a Pulitzer Prize for his opprobrium. — Mark Guiducci, Vanity Fair, 6 Mar. 2026 Meanwhile, many members of Congress skipped town, amid growing public opprobrium that, perhaps, crystallized most visibly in the gossip rag TMZ, which has gone full Woodward and Bernstein, running photos of lawmakers in the line of anything but duty. — Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2026 The policies pursued by the Islamic Republic in the 1990s—the death fatwa against Salman Rushdie and attempts to kill his associates, the terror bombing of a Jewish community center in Argentina—gained it nothing but opprobrium. — Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026 In the summer of 2024, UNICEF’s representative in Congo suggested that 361,000 children might be laboring in mines in southern Congo, though this number seems implausibly high and drew quick opprobrium from Congolese NGOs that work on the issue. — Literary Hub, 22 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for opprobrium
Recent Examples of Synonyms for opprobrium
  1. scandal
  2. disgrace
  3. shame
  4. contempt
  5. odium
  6. humiliation
Noun
  • Plagued by criticism and scandal, it was eventually dissolved by Congress and replaced by a new commission that decided to mostly fund community celebrations.
    — Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • Then, the nation was recovering from the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal.
    — Saige Miller, NPR, 1 July 2026
Definition of scandal
Noun
  • The man who’d held the presidency before Gerald Ford had resigned in disgrace two years earlier.
    — Lynn Schmidt, Mercury News, 2 July 2026
  • Well, its’ interesting because for many years the Republican Party revered Reagan much more than Nixon, partly because Reagan was a successful president and Nixon, of course, ended his presidency in disgrace.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 June 2026
Definition of disgrace
Noun
  • With wonder and with great shame the yodel is an orphaned sound, a sound that turns the serenade toward an addressee that is destined to never hear it.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
  • Altitude is going to be a leveller, just a shame there are no West Bromwich Albion players in the England squad.
    — Phil Hay, New York Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of shame
Noun
  • Criminal charges from contempt of Congress referrals are rare.
    — Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 2 July 2026
  • One of the joys of Air, down to the breathy purity of its title, is its contempt for design—an easy target, but one for which Kracht has sharpened his blade.
    — Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 June 2026
Definition of contempt
Noun
  • Pashinyan had led the movement to oust Moscow’s influence in Armenia; he was now saddled with the odium of losing Karabakh on his watch.
    — Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
  • By heaping odium on Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, one of several prominent opposition figures, the government gave a divided opposition a leader to unite around.
    — Christopher de Bellaigue, The New York Review of Books, 13 Oct. 2022
Definition of odium
Noun
  • Instead, much of the rest of the soccer world will likely feel vindication – and more than a little bit of satisfaction at American humiliation on such a huge stage.
    — Kevin Dotson, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
  • The iconic bunny costume moment, when Elle is tricked into showing up to a non-costume party wearing a Playboy bunny get-up, was the catalyst for exploring how Elle was able to shake that humiliation off.
    — Scarlett Harris, IndieWire, 6 July 2026
Definition of humiliation

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Cite this Entry

“Opprobrium.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/opprobrium. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of opprobrium for Spanish Speakers

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