infamous

adjective in·fa·mous \ ˈin-fə-məs \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

1 : having a reputation of the worst kind : notoriously evil

an infamous traitor

2 : causing or bringing infamy : disgraceful

an infamous crime

3 : convicted of an offense bringing infamy

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infamously

adverb

See infamous defined for English-language learners

See infamous defined for kids

Examples of infamous in a Sentence

The most infamous of South America's poisonous snakes are the ringed coral snake and the pit viper. —Candice Millard, The River of Doubt, 2005
Clemens is famous, or maybe infamous, for his brushback pitches and in particular for his penchant for "doubling up," throwing two brushbacks in a row. —Pat Jordan, New York Times Magazine, 4 Mar. 2001
Instead we invoke the infamous dark matter, also known to make up most of the mass of other galaxies (both spiral and elliptical), clusters of galaxies, and the universe. What is it? Your guess may not be quite as good as mine, but almost. —Virginia Trimble et al., Sky & Telescope, January 1995
a city infamous for poverty and crime
He committed an infamous crime.

Recent Examples of infamous from the Web

The Fox News host is infamous for his zealous defense of President Donald Trump against all manner of foes and scandals.

— matt ford, The New Republic, "Michael Cohen’s mystery client is none other than Sean Hannity.," 16 Apr. 2018
Interstate 35 is infamous for being the divider between Gulf Coast moisture from the east and more arid, desert air masses from the west.

— matthew cappucci, Washington Post, "Oklahoma wildfires ignite in ‘historic’ hot and dry weather conditions," 13 Apr. 2018
Popular demand saw the French striker's infamous 'Hotline Bling' celebration added to the game as of this year, and Griezmann's latest goal celebration has fans up in arms once again.

— SI.com, "Take the L: Gamers Eager for Antoine Griezmann's Fortnite Celebration to Be Included in FIFA 19," 7 Apr. 2018
Few rock stars in recent history have been as infamous as Courtney Love.

— abby jones, Billboard, "8 Times Courtney Love Was, Well, Courtney Love," 6 Apr. 2018
The award will be presented in Toronto in May. With more than 100 buildings to his credit, Doshi is known for dealing creatively with conditions in his country, the world’s second-most populous, which is infamous for its overcrowded slums.

— blair kamin, chicagotribune.com, "In a first for Pritzker Prize, architecture award goes to an Indian architect: Balkrishna Doshi," 7 Mar. 2018
Neither the battleground nor the contending sides bore any resemblance to those for which Basra is infamous: the pitched street battles fought by Shiite militias that just a few years ago turned some neighborhoods into no-go zones.

— margaret coker, New York Times, "Iraq and Saudi Arabia Come Together Just for Kicks," 6 Mar. 2018
Bathed in eerie floodlights, its more infamous history was reflected in the firing squad wall, still pocked with musket ball holes centuries after those sentenced to death met their fate.

— richard tribou, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Chill out or be chilled in St. Augustine after dark," 1 Apr. 2018
Consider Trump's infamous meeting last year with his Cabinet secretaries, who - in front of cameras - outdid one another in thanking the president for the opportunity to serve him.

— chicagotribune.com, "Mattis is an ancient Roman action hero," 29 Mar. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of infamous

Middle English, from Latin infamis, from in- + fama fame

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

infamous Synonyms

INFAMOUS Defined for English Language Learners

infamous

adjective

: well-known for being bad : known for evil acts or crimes
: causing people to think you are bad or evil

INFAMOUS Defined for Kids

infamous

adjective in·fa·mous \ ˈin-fə-məs \

1 : having an evil reputation

an infamous murderer

2 : ¹evil 1, bad

an infamous crime

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infamously

adverb

Law Dictionary

infamous

adjective in·fa·mous \ ˈin-fə-məs \

: of, relating to, or being a crime punishable by imprisonment (as a year or more in a penitentiary) that can lead to loss of rights and privileges upon conviction; also : convicted of such a crime