condescending

play

adjective con·de·scend·ing \ˌkän-di-ˈsen-diŋ\

Definition of condescending

: showing or characterized by a patronizing or superior attitude toward others

condescendingly

play \ˌkän-di-ˈsen-diŋ-lē\ adverb

See condescending defined for English-language learners

Examples of condescending in a Sentence

The next big sequel to roll off the assembly line (awful, condescending phrase, but this is a case of what you have to do when the shoe fits) is going to be a sequel to “Rebecca,” Daphne du Maurier's classic 1930's suspense novel. —Stephen King, New York Times Book Review, 6 June 1993
… when the picturesque was seen close up, the “happy poverty” of the peasant was not always happy. There was something unpleasantly condescending, an element of esthetic slumming in the tourist's or the artist's view of picturesqueness. —Anatole Broyard, New York Times Book Review, 1 Oct. 1989
I always imagined publishers were rather snarky and condescending and made a point of crabbing one's work, but he didn't a bit. —Elizabeth Bowen, letter, 19 Jan. 1923
His comments were offensive and condescending to us.

Recent Examples of condescending from the Web

The Merchant Law Firm requested the recordings to try and show that Superior Court Judge David Emerson had improperly addressed defense attorney Ashleigh Merchant in a condescending manner.

— bill rankin, ajc, "Court rules against law firm in courtroom recordings dispute", 30 May 2017
What’s different, and certainly from a Saudi perspective what’s very welcome, is an American attitude that’s very open and not condescending.

— karen deyoung, Washington Post, "Amid a chillier welcome in Europe, Trump keeps pining for Saudi Arabia", 26 May 2017
Nothing stops climate scientists from talking to local churches or high schools nearby them, from sharing the story of climate science in a straightforward and non-condescending way.

— robinson meyer, The Atlantic, "Are Climate Scientists Ready for Trump?", 27 Dec. 2016
In that family interview with Anderson Cooper, Tiffany batted back a suggestion that her father was condescending and even insulting to women.

— alessandra stanley, New York Times, "The Other Trump", 1 Oct. 2016
Notes: Yes, this question has a condescending tinge to it.

— amy davidson, The New Yorker, "Twelve Debate Questions That Hillary Clinton Should Be Ready For", 26 Sep. 2016
This kind of suspenseful badgering, with its malevolent and condescending patriarchal undertones, pervades Shirley Jackson’s work.

— heather havrilesky, The Atlantic, "Haunted Womanhood", 13 Sep. 2016
Even those conservative professors who are warm toward the Tea Party are warm with a condescending edge.

— emma green, The Atlantic, "Do American Universities Discriminate Against Conservatives?", 30 Apr. 2016
Steve King got up and was pleasantly condescending to them.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "The Five Minute Rule Is Hard But It Is Fair", 5 Aug. 2014

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'condescending'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

What Is the Difference Between condescending and patronizing?

Very few words in English have exactly the same meaning; even words which appear to be entirely synonymous often will be found to have small differences in certain contexts. The words condescending and patronizing present a fine example of this. At first glance these words appear to be defined somewhat circularly: condescending often has the word "patronizing" in its definition, and patronize is defined, in part, as “to adopt an air of condescension toward.”

But both of these words have specialized senses that lend a shade of meaning to their synonymous senses. Patronizing can mean "giving support to" or "being a customer of," suggesting that the "condescending" sense implies superiority gained through a donor-dependent relationship.

The verb condescend used to be free of any hint of the offensive superiority it usually suggests today. It could mean literally "to go or come down" or, figuratively, "to willingly lower oneself to another’s level," senses that are still occasionally encountered in writings on the Bible. The idea of self-consciously lowering oneself is implied in the "patronizing" sense of condescending.