detractive

adjective

Definition of detractivenext
as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value used the detractive epithet "McJob" to describe what his feckless son-in-law did for work

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for detractive
  1. insulting
  2. contemptuous
  3. critical
  4. malicious
  5. disparaging
  6. disdainful
  7. degrading
  8. pejorative
Adjective
  • The target of the anger and scorn in all the insulting posters, slogans, and graffiti of the protest zone was not the education minister but Modi himself.
    — Asim Ali, Time, 1 Aug. 2026
  • The big reveal that Rey was really the still-not-dead Emperor’s grand-daughter was incoherent and kind of insulting.
    — Adam Frank, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of insulting
Adjective
  • The Larson campaign became openly contemptuous of Bronin at the May convention.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2026
  • The man didn’t catch Serena’s contemptuous expression, however, too busy peeling bills from a money clip and pressing them into his date’s hand.
    — Raven Brunner, PEOPLE, 30 June 2026
Definition of contemptuous
Adjective
  • With the 2028 Olympics on the horizon, du Plessis views this as a critical, yet temporary, opportunity to transform cricket into a mainstream American sport, stressing that success demands proactive vision.
    — Vibhas Ratanjee, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2026
  • As in the maritime domain, AI governance is becoming the new frontier of a Cold War-style contest between China and the US, which both sides see as critical to their national security and prosperity.
    — Andy Browne, semafor.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of critical
Adjective
  • These errors can cause crashes or enable attackers to exploit memory vulnerabilities, risking data corruption or executing malicious code.
    — Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Elijah Bieniemy, who is 27 and is a graduate of Olathe Northwest High School, has been charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm during the commission of a felony and discharge of a firearm inside of a dwelling.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 31 July 2026
Definition of malicious
Adjective
  • Felix points to Trump’s disparaging and false comments against Haitians in Springfield, Ohio, which put a target on the back of many Haitian immigrants.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 29 Apr. 2026
  • The irony is that Trump has been more disparaging and dismissive of the military than any other president.
    — Joe Garofoli, San Francisco Chronicle, 17 Mar. 2026
Definition of disparaging
Adjective
  • It was delivered with sneers, an ugly, small-minded few minutes in support of the sclerotic, disdainful of dynamic change.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2026
  • Trump, disdainful of international law and untroubled about the fate of the Palestinians, became the only President in fifty years not to support Palestinian self-rule.
    — David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
Definition of disdainful
Adjective
  • The State Department had designated and sanctioned Ghezel Hesar Prison in 2024 for gross human rights violations and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of prisoners.
    — Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 29 July 2026
  • Even worse, researchers accused Fable 5 of selectively degrading responses related to advanced AI development, providing less useful information on subjects that could aid competing developers and independent researchers.
    — James Marks, Fortune, 23 July 2026
Definition of degrading
Adjective
  • With that in mind, is ring chasing, used as a pejorative, dead after this?
    — Dan Woike, New York Times, 31 July 2026
  • But that pejorative term isn’t reserved only for those in pop or rock music.
    — Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 8 July 2026
Definition of pejorative
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.

Browse Nearby Words

detractions
detractive
detractor
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Detractive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detractive. Accessed 7 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of invidious

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All