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

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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
  • But to propose trading him for anything short of a fourth-round pick is insulting.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Afterward, Lisa brags about her pickpocketing skills and says theft is easier and less insulting to the mark.
    — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of insulting
Adjective
  • Yet the two plots remain separate and contemptuous of each other, with no denouement in sight.
    — Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Below the surface, there is a lot of contemptuous finger-pointing about where the anti-AI energy now coursing through the political-media landscape is coming from.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of contemptuous
Adjective
  • Maine was seen as critical to Democrats’ path to the Senate majority this fall and remained one of the most expensive states in terms of advertising spending.
    — David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Zelenskyy said Ukraine's priorities for the talks were halting strikes on energy and critical infrastructure, unblocking Black Sea grain shipments and expanding prisoner exchanges.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of critical
Adjective
  • Can someone manipulate them through prompt injection or malicious data into crossing those boundaries?
    — Alex Spokoiny, Forbes.com, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Name the pattern Most bloviators aren't malicious, in my experience; it's just become their style.
    — Dorie Clark, Contributor, CNBC, 30 Oct. 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
  • As Cusk has become more disdainful of fiction and more insistent on the documentary function of art, her work has become vaguer and less concrete, fading like old ink into blurred indeterminacy.
    — Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026
  • 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
Definition of disdainful
Adjective
  • At Fuerte Guaicaipuro, a military facility, investigators documented detainees being confined in pit-like cells dug below ground level and subjected to cold, food deprivation and other degrading treatment.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The beating can look degrading, but the check might protect opportunities for hundreds of athletes who never appear in the game.
    — Jason Lloyd, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of degrading
Adjective
  • It was labeled a foreign agent, a designation that carries strong pejorative connotations and implies additional government scrutiny.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
  • The point is, the term is meant to be pejorative, used to describe — and let’s face it, judge — the most exaggerated form of plastic surgery, politics aside.
    — Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 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
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Cite this Entry

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

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