OFFENSIVENESS Synonyms: 84 Similar and Opposite Words

offensiveness

noun

Definition of offensiveness

as in repulsiveness

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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.

Recent Examples of offensiveness But Hokit’s offensiveness in the shadow of the president’s home — with the Washington Monument visible to the south — was one indication that anything and everything was inbounds. — Oskar Garcia, New York Times, 15 June 2026 During this period, Dhillon moved away from the Review’s gleeful offensiveness toward positions suggesting a more moderate conservatism. — Quinta Jurecic, The Atlantic, 13 Apr. 2026 The push came amid concerns about the offensiveness of the name. — Harrison Mantas, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 16 Oct. 2025 There was a Lynchian quality to the podcast, a fun-house-size absurdism that offset its overt offensiveness. — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025 But Vanderbilt framed its investigation around offensiveness, not professional ethics—and offensiveness is not itself grounds for investigation. — Jonathan Marks, Washington Post, 22 Dec. 2020

Recent Examples of Synonyms for offensiveness

Noun

In this attitude was a strange commingling of repugnance and desire, alienation and belonging, intimacy and coldness.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 July 2026
In fact, the retort could lead people to dangerously belittle the scourge and repugnance of real anti-Semitism.

— Salam Fayyad, Foreign Affairs, 20 June 2024

Definition of repugnance

Noun

However, a friendship with the family’s new housemaid, Bridget Sullivan (Vicky Krieps), cracks open Lizzie’s world, shepherding her along a bright and bloody path that will forever go down in infamy.

— Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 17 Sep. 2026
Today was another day that shall forever live in infamy as terror rained from the sky in New York and Washington.

— AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of infamy

Noun

In a pedagogical culture that tends to shy away from unpleasantness, Goodwin’s approach felt like an honest — and valuable — way of dealing with one of the ugliest aspects of American literary history.

— Helen I. Bennett, Hartford Courant, 25 Aug. 2026
Accustomed to Miller saving them, other Padres may have saved themselves some unpleasantness by sweeping the Marlins in three road games and now the Rockies in two.

— Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 30 July 2026

Definition of unpleasantness

Noun

The atrocities committed in Chile were similar to those in Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, and Central America, where leftist movements and guerrillas were squashed with incredible brutality.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack an atrocity with no military purpose.

— Hanna Arhirova, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of atrocity

Noun

Sustainable credentials are also on point, with PFAS-free water repellency, ethically sourced suede uppers, and an outsole made from post-consumer plastic and agricultural waste.

— Chris Haslam, Wired News, 24 May 2026
Ridestore subjects materials to failure testing during both development and production, evaluating bond strength in laminated membranes, water-repellency performance and trim durability before materials move into manufacturing.

— Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 6 May 2026

Definition of repellency

Noun

The undesirability of the undead state is inherent in the term itself.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 May 2026
There are hyper-local gags about the Williamsburg bar Union Pool and the undesirability of living in the Financial District, and a creature known as Rat Pizza — like Pizza Rat in reverse.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 20 Apr. 2026

Definition of undesirability

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“Offensiveness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/offensiveness. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of offensiveness

noun

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