scandal

noun scan·dal \ ˈskan-dᵊl \

Updated on: 19 Apr 2018

Definition of scandal

1 a : discredit brought upon religion by unseemly conduct in a religious person

b : conduct that causes or encourages a lapse of faith or of religious obedience in another

2 : loss of or damage to reputation caused by actual or apparent violation of morality or propriety : disgrace

3 a : a circumstance or action that offends propriety or established moral conceptions or disgraces those associated with it

b : a person whose conduct offends propriety or morality

a scandal to the profession

4 : malicious or defamatory gossip

5 : indignation, chagrin, or bewilderment brought about by a flagrant violation of morality, propriety, or religious opinion

See scandal defined for English-language learners

See scandal defined for kids

Examples of scandal in a Sentence

There was a major scandal involving the mayor's ties with the Mob.
Government officials were caught in an embezzlement scandal.
Her behavior caused a scandal at school.
There was never a hint of scandal during her time in office.
The gossip magazine is filled with rumors and scandal.
The high price of gas these days is a scandal.
It's a scandal that this city doesn't have a movie theater.

Recent Examples of scandal from the Web

In Colombia, scandals within one of its newest political groups have been creating election waves.

— nicholas casey, New York Times, "For Americas Summit, a Peruvian Seaside Locale, and Plenty of Trouble," 13 Apr. 2018
Then came 9/11, followed by the Enron and Worldcom scandals.

— ian bogost, The Atlantic, "The Dot-Coms Were Better Than Facebook," 13 Apr. 2018
The company found that ad spending on Facebook increased 14.5 percent compared to the week before the scandal broke.

— NBC News, "Facebook's scandals aren't hurting its bottom line," 12 Apr. 2018
The Daily Beast reported that President Donald Trump’s Chief of Staff John Kelly told Pruitt in no uncertain terms that the scandals need to stop.

— umair irfan, Vox, "Every legal and ethical investigation into the EPA’s Scott Pruitt we know of so far," 12 Apr. 2018
Her mother, Kris, flew out to support her post-scandal.

— sarah spellings, The Cut, "Tristan Thompson Booed at First Basketball Game Since Khloé Kardashian Cheating Scandal," 12 Apr. 2018
Neither Oldsey nor Doran were on the board when the scandal broke.

— susan snyder, Philly.com, "'Paterno' movie airs. Who among the past and present Penn State leadership planned to watch?," 7 Apr. 2018
Today, she was spotted out in London for the first time since news of the scandal broke.

— maggie maloney, Town & Country, "Pippa Middleton Steps Out For the First Time Since Her Father-in-Law's Scandal," 5 Apr. 2018
Tuesday, March 27 and Wednesday, March 28 On Tuesday, news concerning financial malfeasance at the university blew up and the scandal broke Twitter.

— alexandria frank, Teen Vogue, "Howard University Students Are Calling for Their President to Resign," 3 Apr. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of scandal

Middle English, from Late Latin scandalum stumbling block, offense, from Greek skandalon trap, stumbling block, offense; akin to Latin scandere to climb

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First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

scandal Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of scandal

offense, sin, vice, crime, scandal mean a transgression of law. offense applies to the infraction of any law, rule, or code.

- at that school no offense went unpunished

sin implies an offense against moral or religious law.

- the sin of blasphemy

vice applies to a habit or practice that degrades or corrupts.

- regarded gambling as a vice

crime implies a serious offense punishable by the law of the state.

- the crime of murder

scandal applies to an offense that outrages the public conscience.

- a career ruined by a sex scandal

scandal

verb

Definition of scandal

transitive verb

1 obsolete : disgrace

2 chiefly dialectal : defame, slander

Recent Examples of scandal from the Web

Social scientists predicted the Cambridge Analytica scandal way back in 2007.

— felix salmon, WIRED, "The Case for A Zuck-Free Facebook," 3 Apr. 2018

First Known Use of scandal

1592

SCANDAL Defined for English Language Learners

scandal

noun

Definition of scandal for English Language Learners

: an occurrence in which people are shocked and upset because of behavior that is morally or legally wrong
: talk about the shocking or immoral things that people have done or are believed to have done
: something that is shocking, upsetting, or unacceptable