insult

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To say or do something rude that offends someone.

   He insulted her by laughing at her accent.

2. 2
   noun

   A rude remark or action that offends someone.

   Calling him lazy was a real insult.

The verb is derived from Middle French insulter (modern French insulter (“to insult”)) or its etymon Latin īnsultō (“to spring, leap or jump at or upon; to abuse, insult, revile, taunt”), the frequentative form of īnsiliō (“to bound; to leap in or upon”), from in- (prefix meaning ‘in, inside, within’) + saliō (“to bound, jump, leap; to spring forth; to flow down”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *sel- (“to spring”)). The noun is derived from Middle French insult (modern French insulte (“insult”)) or its etymon Late Latin insultus (“insult, reviling, scoffing”), from īnsiliō (“to bound; to…

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