as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language
a well-reasoned thesis that merited more than just a scornful, contumelious response
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for contumelious
Adjective
-
Growing up, Amy claims her father, Terry Jordan, was emotionally abusive towards her and her mother and as a result, Deanna was not able to fully commit herself to parenting.—
Colson Thayer,
PEOPLE,
11 Oct. 2025 -
Greater transparency in pet purchases will bring to light abusive practices that take advantage of pets in order to exploit hopeful pet owners.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
To educate all of them in similar ways is insulting, and silly.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Perkins said the drink bore the insulting message.—
Victoria Moorwood,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
22 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
That would mean the government has done something, or multiple things, so outrageous as to violate Comey's due process rights under the Constitution.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Actress sounds alarm on 'outrageous' support for Hamas, two years since Oct 7 massacre.—
,
FOXNews.com,
7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
This culture is incredibly cruel, and things have gotten really obscene.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Oct. 2025
-
In 2009, former Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams was fined $250,000 for making an obscene gesture toward a Buffalo Bills fan.—
Cole Sullivan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Honor is not, in Mr. Sommers’s view, without its opprobrious aspects, not least its association with violence.—
Joseph Epstein,
WSJ,
3 Aug. 2018
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Contumelious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/contumelious. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share