dismissive

adjective

dis·​mis·​sive dis-ˈmi-siv 

: serving to dismiss or reject someone or something : having or showing a disdainful attitude toward someone or something regarded as unworthy of serious attention

He responded to the question with a dismissive wave.

In the past, Westerberg had been dismissive of Bob's playing, but he says relistening to the early records gave him a new perspective.

—Bob Weir

dismissively adverb

Writer Tom Fontana's violent, realistic drama debuted five years ago and uninitiated viewers still dismissively call it "that prison show on HBO."

—Ian Rothkerch

These are not people who speak dismissively of the brain's capabilities.

—Brad Leithauser

dismissiveness noun

The work of feminist scholars, both individually and collectively, has been greeted in some quarters with impatience, irritation, dismissiveness, even contempt.

—Cullen Murphy

Examples of dismissive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The posthumous revelation that Munro’s husband, Gerald Fremlin, had assaulted her daughter Andrea Skinner as a child and that Munro was dismissive of this fact hit the literary world like a wrecking ball. —Literary Hub, 9 Apr. 2026

But Sweis, who is also CASD’s secretary, told the legislative committee in February that when providers raised concerns about potential conflicts with Medicaid billing rules, CDPH officials were dismissive — and later used those concerns as justification for not renewing her provider’s contract. —Jack O'Connor, Chicago Tribune, 9 Apr. 2026

Equally dismissive of his own output, Julian hasn’t wielded a paintbrush in decades. —Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026

Vanderbilt continued the discussion when Redick sat on the bench after the timeout, and Redick made a dismissive gesture in Vanderbilt’s direction that appeared to irritate Vanderbilt further. —ABC News, 8 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1645, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for dismissive

• derisive
• emissive
• permissive
• submissive
• transmissive
• missive