as in insulting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
the reviewer used the pejorative word "versifier" to refer to the writer, whose poems had struck a responsive chord with the general public
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pejorative
Tell us something weird and/or wonderful about the club
Bayern were formed in response to pejorative attitudes towards competitive football.
—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 7 June 2025
The president blasted Newsom, a potential candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, over the issue with a pejorative nickname in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.
—Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 28 May 2025
All of the plaintiffs accused Robinson's wife, Frances Robinson, who is also named as a defendant, of perpetuating a hostile work environment by screaming at them and using ethnically pejorative language.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 8 May 2025
But by and large, being ‘on the beach’ remains a pejorative label.
—Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pejorative
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, New York Times, 7 June 2025
The president blasted Newsom, a potential candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, over the issue with a pejorative nickname in a Truth Social post on Tuesday.
—Elizabeth Crisp, The Hill, 28 May 2025
All of the plaintiffs accused Robinson's wife, Frances Robinson, who is also named as a defendant, of perpetuating a hostile work environment by screaming at them and using ethnically pejorative language.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 8 May 2025
But by and large, being ‘on the beach’ remains a pejorative label.
—Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pejorative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pejorative
Adjective
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Stuck a feather in his cap and called it macaroni is insulting because a macaroni was a pejorative term used to describe a fashionable man with feminine traits of 18th-century Britain.—
Kurt Snibbe,
Oc Register,
2 July 2025
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Conversations revealed an ongoing dialogue that was not only deeply insulting to Read, but morally offensive to women broadly.—
Gemma Allen,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
Adjective
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That post used a derogatory term that historically originated as an insult against Chinese people but is often used more generally toward East Asians.—
Doha Madani,
NBC news,
10 July 2025
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More: Officials rename 28 places in Wisconsin that had names derogatory to Indigenous women.—
Frank Vaisvilas,
jsonline.com,
9 July 2025
Adjective
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Deepfakes have been growing more sophisticated in recent years, in addition to being increasingly deployed for malicious purposes.—
Shannon Bond,
NPR,
10 July 2025
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The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have antivirus software installed on all your devices.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
10 July 2025
Adjective
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Trump tried to claim that media reports about his administration’s early conclusions were somehow demeaning attacks on the performance of our military.—
Chris Brennan,
USA Today,
27 June 2025
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Loss of community trust Trans and nonbinary people have often been studied under opportunistic and demeaning circumstances.—
Paz Galupo,
The Conversation,
2 June 2025
Adjective
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Living the Values: Nothing is more disparaging for employees than having a leader who demonstrates behaviors that do not align with the organizational values, and no one seems to care.—
Tony Gambill,
Forbes.com,
24 June 2025
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The 2023 Economic Report Of The President published in March of 2023 was relatively disparaging of cryptoassets and DLTs.—
Lawrence Wintermeyer,
Forbes,
5 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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This subsided with unusual speed, however, as cricket fans took instead to sharing the self-deprecatory jokes coming over the border.—
The Economist,
The Economist,
22 June 2019
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Philipps has acquired her 1-million-and-growing Instagram followers through her self-deprecatory humor, raw honesty and vulnerability.—
Sonja Haller,
USA TODAY,
11 July 2018
Adjective
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Though the pollen gunk will pass, he's concerned by a contingent of Twitter trolls who've shared uncomplimentary reviews of his recent North American tour.—
Jordan Runtagh,
PEOPLE.com,
21 Jan. 2022
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Neither party admitted to liability and each agreed to refrain from making disparaging, negative or uncomplimentary statements about the other, the document said.—
Lorraine Mirabella,
Baltimore Sun,
29 July 2022
Adjective
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By contrast, there’s something almost nakedly contemptuous about the end of this season.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
30 May 2025
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That’s fine by an administration that seems basically contemptuous of the very concept of due process.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
31 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pejorative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pejorative. Accessed 23 Jul. 2025.
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