1
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
the scandalous news that police officers had been taking bribes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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
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 scandalous
But the original story, which follows a married woman embarking on a scandalous affair with the estate’s gamekeeper, was so explicit that it was actually banned as pornography until 1960.
—
Jenna Ryu, SELF, 1 May 2025
Before marrying Charlene in 2011, Albert’s playboy reputation grew over his scandalous affairs, including with a German topless model and multiple other women.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 18 June 2025
Three Kissimmee police officers were fired and two others were demoted following a lengthy investigation into the scandalous excessive force case that has plagued the department for months, Kissimmee police Chief Charles Broadway announced Wednesday.
—Cristóbal Reyes, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 June 2025
Modern historians largely contest the most scandalous of these claims.
—Diana Arterian
june 16, Literary Hub, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for scandalous
Jenna Ryu, SELF, 1 May 2025
Before marrying Charlene in 2011, Albert’s playboy reputation grew over his scandalous affairs, including with a German topless model and multiple other women.
—Martha Ross, Mercury News, 18 June 2025
Three Kissimmee police officers were fired and two others were demoted following a lengthy investigation into the scandalous excessive force case that has plagued the department for months, Kissimmee police Chief Charles Broadway announced Wednesday.
—Cristóbal Reyes, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 June 2025
Modern historians largely contest the most scandalous of these claims.
—Diana Arterian
june 16, Literary Hub, 16 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for scandalous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scandalous
Adjective
-
Danny DeVito, who plays the hilarious and disgusting Frank Reynolds on Always Sunny, used to be married to a fellow comedy legend, Rhea Perlman.—
Allison DeGrushe Published,
EW.com,
9 July 2025
-
July 7, 2025 Homa included another message from a fan that is far too disgusting to even reiterate.—
Kendall Capps,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 July 2025
Adjective
-
In numerous replies and posts, Grok wrote messaged that glorified Adolf Hitler, attached stereotypes to users with Jewish surnames and spread erroneous conspiracy theories about the role of Jewish people in government, commerce and media.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
10 July 2025
-
Because of erroneous information on the website for the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST), a story published July 6 on Page A1 incorrectly reported that former San Jose police officer George Brown’s police license with the state had been taken off suspension.—
Bay Area News Group,
Mercury News,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
And by sharing the ugly parts, she's made golf feel more human.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 July 2025
-
Confirmation bias rears its ugly head, and the person convinces themselves that AI sentience is at hand.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
Adjective
-
Also sickening is Aja, transforming from cocoon to butterfly — unfortunately, Jasmine Masters will see her in court.—
Chris Feil,
Vulture,
4 July 2025
-
The portal that allows the players to go from school to school is also sickening.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
9 June 2025
Adjective
-
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
-
In Britain, Musk has called for the release of Tommy Robinson, a far-right extremist who was jailed for 18 months in October for repeating a libelous claim about a Syrian refugee schoolboy attacking girls.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA TODAY,
7 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
In addition to all the shocking Prime Day finds on sale now, J.Crew Factory is stepping up and dropping prices.—
Alyssa Grabinski,
People.com,
9 July 2025
-
All those TikToks sharing the most important news of the week, or the Instagram influencers reacting to a shocking headline, or the YouTubers making video essays analyzing current events — all of these could not exist without the labor and specialized knowledge of journalists.—
Reia Li,
AZCentral.com,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
In Wednesday’s poll, Mamdani had a higher net favorability rating (40% favorable to 36% unfavorable) than the net negative ratings of Cuomo (44% to 46%) and Adams (28% to 62%).—
David Zimmermann,
The Washington Examiner,
9 July 2025
-
The Mumsnet user then listed some recent unfavorable restaurant outings.—
Brian Anthony Hernandez,
People.com,
6 July 2025
Adjective
-
The market is just full of butcher shops, with the most ghastly whole pigs and halves of steers hanging from horrible hooks.—
John Updike,
New Yorker,
11 July 2025
-
For many who were directly affected by the flood, these post-flood days have been like waking up from a horrible nightmare.—
Bea L. Hines,
Miami Herald,
11 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scandalous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scandalous. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share