Lexic.us

Definition of Despise

1. Verb. Look down on with disdain. "Sam cannot despise Sue "; "The professor scorns the students who don't catch on immediately"

Definition of Despise

1. v. t. To look down upon with disfavor or contempt; to contemn; to scorn; to disdain; to have a low opinion or contemptuous dislike of.

Definition of Despise

1. Verb. To regard with contempt or scorn. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Despise

1. to loathe [v -SPISED, -SPISING, -SPISES] - See also: loathe

Lexicographical Neighbors of Despise

Literary usage of Despise

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan (1860)
"Render them not reviling for revile ; But, if they frown, I pr'ythee on them smile : Perhaps 'tis nature, or some ill report, Has made them thus despise or ..."

2. The Theory of Moral Sentiments: Or, An Essay Towards an Analysis of the by Adam Smith (1817)
"Of the corruption of our moral sentiments, which is occasioned by this disposition to admire the rich and the great, and to despise or neglect persons of ..."

3. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon (1831)
"... he should be able to withstand the regular forces of the West, commanded by a rival, whose military character it was impossible for him to despise. ..."

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