disgrace

1 of 2

verb

dis·​grace di-ˈskrās How to pronounce disgrace (audio)
dis-ˈgrās
disgraced; disgracing; disgraces

transitive verb

1
: to be a source of shame to
Your actions disgraced the family.
2
: to cause to lose favor (see favor entry 1 sense 1a(2)) or standing
was disgraced by the hint of scandal
3
archaic : to humiliate by a superior showing
thy whiteness … shall disgrace the swanRobert Browning
disgracer noun

disgrace

2 of 2

noun

1
a
: the condition of one fallen from grace : the condition of one who has lost honor (see honor entry 1 sense 1a)
left in disgrace
b
: loss of grace, favor, or honor
brought disgrace upon the family
2
: a source of shame
Your manners are a disgrace.
He's a disgrace to the profession.
Choose the Right Synonym for disgrace

disgrace, dishonor, disrepute, infamy, ignominy mean the state or condition of suffering loss of esteem and of enduring reproach.

disgrace often implies humiliation and sometimes ostracism.

sent home in disgrace

dishonor emphasizes the loss of honor that one has enjoyed or the loss of self-esteem.

preferred death to life with dishonor

disrepute stresses loss of one's good name or the acquiring of a bad reputation.

a once proud name fallen into disrepute

infamy usually implies notoriety as well as exceeding shame.

a day that lives in infamy

ignominy stresses humiliation.

the ignominy of being arrested

Examples of disgrace in a Sentence

Verb Many feel that the mayor has disgraced the town government by accepting personal favors from local businesspeople. He felt he had disgraced himself by failing at school. Noun The secret was protected out of a fear of political disgrace. Many feel that the mayor has brought disgrace upon the town. She was forced to leave in disgrace. His table manners are a disgrace. The health-care system is a national disgrace.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Day’s adaptation strips away most of the political background of the 2017 novel, leaving only residual traces of Jakub’s search for redemption for the sins of his father, an informant for the Communist Party publicly disgraced following the fall of the regime. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Feb. 2024 In 2008, McDonald’s disgraced its dollar menu, raising the price of the double cheeseburger to $1.19 and replacing the dollar version of the cheeseburger with an inferior McDouble — a product with one slice of cheese instead of two. Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 13 Feb. 2024 Advertisement The hotel is owned by Chinese billionaire Wei Huang, whose real estate company, Shen Zhen New World I, was found guilty of fraud and bribery charges in connection with the corruption case involving disgraced former Councilmember José Huizar. Noah Goldberg, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2024 But Republicans have better friends available to them, who haven’t disgraced themselves by trying to deny the results of an election, who would be quite likely to vanquish Biden, and who would be capable presidents. The Editors, National Review, 10 Jan. 2024 The North Carolina State Board of Elections has disgraced themselves and disgraced the voters of North Carolina. Heather Hunter, Washington Examiner, 3 Jan. 2024 After being disgraced by the scientific community, Mafune partners with the Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens who plan to use Titanosaurus and Mechagodzilla 2 to take over Earth and turn it into a utopia of their design. Richard Newby, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Dec. 2023 The radical deliberation of Polanski’s framing, emphasizing Szpilman’s helplessness at every turn, disgraces the usual bromides about the triumph of the human spirit, as does Adrien Brody’s still-astonishing performance. Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 14 Dec. 2023 Harvard President Claudine Gray disgraced herself, & her university, by refusing to condemn violent antisemitism & calls for genocide against Jewish students on her campus. Samantha-Jo Roth, Washington Examiner, 12 Dec. 2023
Noun
Since Biden took office, America has retreated in disgrace from Afghanistan, desultorily assisted Ukraine in resisting Russia’s invasion, and watched in horror as Hamas murdered, raped, and kidnapped Israelis — including American citizens. Matthew Continetti, National Review, 9 Mar. 2024 Just one California senator, Richard Nixon, made it to the presidency only to resign in disgrace, while Dianne Feinstein became the state’s first woman to represent the state in 1992 and served for a record 31 years before her death last year. Dan Walters, The Mercury News, 6 Mar. 2024 The statements Donald Trump made are a disgrace to this great country. Dp Opinion, The Denver Post, 14 Feb. 2024 Tellingly, a number of polls recently have shown Sunak is even less popular than his predecessor Liz Truss, who resigned in disgrace after her controversial economic policies caused the pound to crash and interest rates to rise in a matter of days. Luke McGee, CNN, 16 Feb. 2024 But now under a federal investigation with its most resilient force gone from the promotion in disgrace, WWE is left in a vulnerable position. Alfred Konuwa, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024 This is particularly refreshing in light of the fact that a former principal in the school system was forced to resign in disgrace as a result of the revelation of his hobby of drag performing. Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 14 Feb. 2024 Some want death, like Moeka Hoshi’s Fuji, directionless after a family disgrace. Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2024 If so, the shame and disgrace will rest with the accusers, not the accused. Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 19 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'disgrace.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle French, from Old Italian disgrazia, from dis- (from Latin) + grazia grace, from Latin gratia — more at grace

First Known Use

Verb

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Noun

1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of disgrace was in 1580

Dictionary Entries Near disgrace

Cite this Entry

“Disgrace.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disgrace. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

disgrace

1 of 2 verb
dis·​grace dis-ˈgrās How to pronounce disgrace (audio)
disgraced; disgracing
: to bring shame to
disgracer noun

disgrace

2 of 2 noun
1
: the condition of being looked down on : loss of respect
in disgrace with one's schoolmates
2
: dishonor entry 1 sense 1, shame
the disgrace of being a coward
3
: a cause of shame
that person's manners are a disgrace
disgraceful
dis-ˈgrās-fəl
adjective
disgracefully
-fə-lē
adverb
disgracefulness noun

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