1
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
the scandalous news that police officers had been taking bribes
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in erroneous
causing or intended to cause unjust injury to a person's good name
spread a scandalous rumor about a coworker that almost cost him his job
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scandalous
This is a shockingly scandalous choice for an amateur theater debut.
—
Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 11 Sep. 2025
Music supervisor Matt Biffa relishes more than a few needle drops catered to scandalous character beats that only enrich this viewing experience.
—Proma Khosla, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2025
The vibe is slightly scandalous and dimly lit, basically everything a good speakeasy should be.
—Jill Robbins, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2025
The term was coined in the 1990s when the antics of the players and scandalous incidents resembled something of a high-octane soap opera.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scandalous
Emily Zarevich, JSTOR Daily, 11 Sep. 2025
Music supervisor Matt Biffa relishes more than a few needle drops catered to scandalous character beats that only enrich this viewing experience.
—Proma Khosla, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2025
The vibe is slightly scandalous and dimly lit, basically everything a good speakeasy should be.
—Jill Robbins, Southern Living, 5 Sep. 2025
The term was coined in the 1990s when the antics of the players and scandalous incidents resembled something of a high-octane soap opera.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for scandalous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scandalous
Adjective
-
Evshine Memory Foam Slippers Listen, airplane floors are disgusting.—
Carin Ryan,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Oct. 2025
-
Some of the abuse that came later, though, was disgusting.—
Kevin Coulson,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Vedra and other debt law experts said a high rate of default judgments indicates a system that favors the pursuers over the pursued — and increases the chances someone will be harmed by an erroneous bill.—
Rae Ellen Bichell,
Fortune,
29 Sep. 2025
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And in 2010’s Flash Crash, algorithmic trading bots created a feedback loop of erroneous trades, wiping out nearly $1 trillion in market value in minutes.—
Steve Booren,
Denver Post,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
As if the Twins hadn’t experienced enough misery, September opened at home with an ugly, four-game sweep by the White Sox, who lost at least 100 games for the third year in a row.—
Dan Hayes,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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When the Motion Picture Association of America joined the consortium, in 2014, the fight grew uglier.—
Julian Lucas,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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To come in and have [designers] fight over my Polaroid would be so sickening, or even a judge on the show.—
McKinley Franklin,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Sep. 2025
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Man arrested for sickening act at Charlie Kirk memorial outside Turning Point HQ MAJOR HEADLINES PARTY POWERPLAY – Zohran Mamdani lands key endorsement in New York City mayoral race.—
,
FOXNews.com,
15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In recent weeks, though, her group has doubled in size, and while in the past there were only two or three posts per day, Mitchell and her new moderators now have to wade through 60-plus comments ranging from helpful to libelous.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
25 Apr. 2025
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And in this age of clickbait journalism, even those members of the legacy media have resorted to libelous headlines and false reports to generate views.—
Zach Schonfeld,
The Hill,
24 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
That’s the most shocking thing.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
30 Sep. 2025
-
As if that wasn’t enough motivation, the Horned Frogs (3-1, 0-1 Big 12) will face Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes (2-3, 0-2) for the first time since Sanders led the Buffs to a shocking 45-42 upset in Fort Worth to open the 2023 season.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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With Dart now the starter in New York, however, Ward will need to overcome unfavorable surroundings and orchestrate a Titans turnaround to stay in the top spot.—
Dane Brugler,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
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After an unfavorable appeals court decision in December, Nasdaq stopped mandating companies disclose their board gender and diversity stats.—
Julia Boorstin,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Miami could choose to move on from the star receiver due to the horrible season-ending injury.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Many of the game’s best teams spent the regular season alternating between brilliant and horrible.—
Levi Weaver,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scandalous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scandalous. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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