Meaning & use
despise
Last updated
UK/dɪˈspaɪz/
US/dɪˈspaɪz/
Meaning
verbtransitive
To dislike someone or something strongly and look down on them with contempt.
Grammar: Always takes an object; unlike hate to do, say despise doing something.
Patterns
- despise someone/something
- despise someone for something
- despise doing something
- be widely despised
Many employees despise being blamed for mistakes they did not make.
She despised cruelty disguised as honesty.
He was despised for lying to his friends.
Word forms
| third person singular | despises |
|---|---|
| past tense | despised |
| past participle | despised |
| -ing form | despising |
Common combinations
- deeply despise
- They deeply despise bullying in any form.
- despise hypocrisy
- The voters despised hypocrisy from public officials.
- despise someone for lying
- He forgave the error but despised her for lying about it.
- widely despised
- The corrupt official was widely despised by the town.
Synonyms and how they differ
- loathe
- Loathe suggests disgust or intense aversion; despise adds contempt and looking down.
- detest
- Detest means hate strongly; despise is stronger and more contemptuous.
- scorn
- Scorn shows open contempt and rejection; despise is the feeling behind it.
Opposites
Word family
- contempt noun
- the feeling that someone or something deserves no respect.
- contemptuous adjective
- showing contempt: a contemptuous reply.
Commonly confused: despise or despite?
despise vs despite
Despite is a preposition meaning in spite of; despise is a verb meaning to feel contempt.
Practice
She ___ being interrupted during the exam.
Choose one answer.
The subject she needs the third-person singular despises; the -ing form works after it, not as the main verb.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “despise”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
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