supercilious

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   expressive of contempt

   I curled my lip in a supercilious smile.

Appears in

Simplified etymology

Supercilious comes from Latin supercilium, “eyebrow.” By the 6th century the Latin word had also acquired a sense connected with disdain, reflecting the use of raised eyebrows to express contemptuous superiority.

Learned borrowing from Latin superciliōsus (“haughty”).

Topics

External links

• Google Images
• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary