put-downs

noun

plural of put-down
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

Relevance

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

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 put-downs Trump, of course, is famous for put-downs whose cruelty is part of their appeal. — Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026 The series combines potty-mouthed put-downs with more sentimental story lines. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 25 June 2026 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 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
  1. insults
  2. criticisms
  3. sarcasms
  4. condemnations
  5. disparagements
  6. abuses
Noun
  • In recent years, Georgia’s State Election Board has been plagued by infighting, feuds, insults, partisan maneuvering and out-and-out shouting matches.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 4 Aug. 2026
  • His tenure came to an end when video surfaced of a drunken Galliano berating other customers at a Paris bar with vile antisemitic insults.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of insults
Noun
  • Some scientists in the room said Kennedy’s expressions of appreciation were difficult to hear after his previous criticisms of the CDC, as well as federal health department cuts last year that included hundreds of positions at the agency.
    — Lena H. Sun, Washington Post, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The movie itself disappoints him for its deviations from the Stephen King novel (including this detail may help preempt criticisms over this adaptation), but he’s also distracted by the presence of a strikingly handsome stranger (Homer Gere).
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of criticisms
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
Definition of sarcasms
Noun
  • In response, Washington has issued diplomatic condemnations against Latin American officials, revoked visas, and even threatened to use force against the region’s governments.
    — Natalia Cote-Muñoz, Foreign Affairs, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Infantino has been on the receiving end of an international deluge of condemnations over his plan to secure private funding for the world’s most prestigious soccer competition.
    — Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of condemnations
Noun
  • These disparagements cut to the core of southern manhood.
    — Rob Wolfe, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026
Definition of disparagements
Noun
  • But it must be followed with a deep dive to detect other abuses.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Aug. 2026
  • To safeguard against these abuses of power, democracies like the UK and US have hearings, committees, and other measures to hold their intelligence bodies accountable, said Shetler-Jones.
    — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 31 July 2026
Definition of abuses

Browse Nearby Words

put down
put-downs
put forth
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Put-downs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/put-downs. Accessed 10 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!

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 that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
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

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
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