Contemptuousness

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The condition of exhibiting a scornful disdain or disrespect for individuals or ideas is evident in the way one interacts with them
2. A disposition marked by an attitude of superiority and derision towards others reveals a profound lack of respect
3. The quality of expressing disdain or a strong lack of respect toward people or ideas

Etymology: "Contemptuousness" is a plain formation: the adjective "contemptuous" with the suffix "-ness" added to turn a quality into a noun. The suffix has a long pedigree of its own. It descends from an Old English "-nes" (also "-nesse" in Middle English), a noun-forming ending that traces back to Proto-Germanic roots and, further back, to a reconstructed Proto-Indo-European ancestor. English speakers used it to build countless abstract nouns, so the adjective "contemptuous" could be converted into a state or condition with little effort. The adjective itself carries the older history. "Contemptuous" is built on "contempt," which came into English from Old French and ultimately from Latin "contemptus," the past participle of "contemnere," meaning "to despise" or "to scorn." The Latin verb was built from "con-" (an intensifying prefix) and "temnere," a verb meaning "to slight." The result is a word whose core sense has stayed remarkably stable for centuries: holding someone or something in low regard.

Synonyms: disdainfulness, scornfulness, disrespect, disdain, ridicule

Antonyms: respect, admiration, esteem, regard, appreciation