Word of the Day

: December 27, 2014

opprobrium

noun uh-PROH-bree-um

What It Means

1 : something that brings disgrace

2 a : public disgrace or ill fame that follows from conduct considered grossly wrong or vicious

b : contempt, reproach

opprobrium in Context

The athlete's admission of using steroids earned her much opprobrium from fans.

"People flocked here to break free from the shackles of conformity and societal opprobrium, experimenting in every field of human endeavor with little fear of official disdain." - Gilbert Ross, New York Observer, October 21, 2014

Did You Know?

Opprobrium was borrowed into English from Latin in the 17th century. It came from the Latin verb opprobrare, which means "to reproach." That verb in turn came from the noun probrum, meaning "disgraceful act" or "reproach." These gave us opprobrium as well as its adjective form opprobrious, which means "scurrilous" or "infamous." One might commit an "opprobrious crime" or be berated with "opprobrious language." Probrum gave English another word too, but you might have a little trouble guessing it. It's exprobrate, an archaic synonym of censure and upbraid.