1
as in insults
an act or expression showing scorn and usually intended to hurt another's feelings
new hires always have to deal with put-downs and practical jokes from the older employees
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in defamations
the act of making a person or a thing seem little or unimportant
your never-ending put-down of my musical talents is really starting to annoy me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of put-downs
When Marilyn Walker was a little girl, her grandmother introduced her to sarcasm through genteel put-downs that sounded sweet but weren’t.
—
Angela Haupt, Time, 10 Mar. 2026
Watch a season of the Y2K reality juggernaut and the tone will vacillate wildly between cringe-worthy put-downs via Janice Dickinson, cringier photoshoots, feel-good runway lessons with Miss J, and body positivity monologues from Tyra Banks.
—Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 17 Feb. 2026
Crockett, a representative from a deep-blue district that includes much of Dallas, has attained fame with snappy put-downs of Republicans, many of which have gone viral on social media.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Many of them are amusing enough to get chuckles and the odd big laugh but a little more wit amongst the throwaway put-downs would have been welcome.
—Richard Kuipers, Variety, 26 Jan. 2026
Angela Haupt, Time, 10 Mar. 2026
Watch a season of the Y2K reality juggernaut and the tone will vacillate wildly between cringe-worthy put-downs via Janice Dickinson, cringier photoshoots, feel-good runway lessons with Miss J, and body positivity monologues from Tyra Banks.
—Madeline Hirsch, InStyle, 17 Feb. 2026
Crockett, a representative from a deep-blue district that includes much of Dallas, has attained fame with snappy put-downs of Republicans, many of which have gone viral on social media.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2026
Many of them are amusing enough to get chuckles and the odd big laugh but a little more wit amongst the throwaway put-downs would have been welcome.
—Richard Kuipers, Variety, 26 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for put-downs
Noun
-
Some of the insults refer to comments Talarico has made over the years.—
Danielle Kurtzleben,
NPR,
30 May 2026
-
In state offices, though men reported higher levels of threats and attacks, more women than men experienced harassment and insults.—
Caelyn Pender,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
First seen at a night-club table of menacing lowlifes, Ida, whose mother tongue is Brooklynese, suddenly switches to a heavy British accent and dispenses a torrent of highly literary sarcasms.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Mears, who stepped into the prosecutor role in 2019, has long been the target of criticisms from Republicans who accused him of failing to seek tougher sentences for violent criminals.—
Kristine Phillips,
IndyStar,
5 June 2026
-
There are valid criticisms surrounding the true crime genre, including accusations that the medium has become sensational and exploitative.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Lawmakers demand corporate condemnations, meetings and disclosure of political donations, warning that silence on map fights — and potential boycotts and protests — will reveal whether boardrooms truly back democracy and Black political power.—
Matt Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
26 May 2026
-
In addition to condemnations of oil and gas companies, the war has reignited calls for more hardline windfall taxes on fossil fuel firms.—
Tristan Bove,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
For years, human rights organizations, former political prisoners and opposition leaders alleged that torture and other abuses were carried out inside its walls.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
4 June 2026
-
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.—
Topher Sanders,
ProPublica,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Put-downs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/put-downs. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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