Insult

How to spell insult

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce insult

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does insult mean?

1. verbTo speak to or treat someone with scornful rudeness that causes offence.
2. nounA scornfully rude remark or act that offends someone.

Insult in a sentence

• verb

  He did not mean to insult the waiter when he complained about the bill.

• noun

  Calling his work careless was a deliberate insult.

• verb

  Refusing to shake hands can insult the host at a formal dinner.

• noun

  The low pay offer felt like an insult after years of loyal service.

Where does insult come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb insultare, meaning 'to leap upon' or 'to trample on', formed from the prefix in- ('on, against') and saltare, a frequentative of salire meaning 'to leap or jump'. In Roman usage the sense of physically leaping at someone shifted to the figurative idea of treating someone scornfully, as if jumping all over them in contempt. English took the word in the sixteenth century by way of French insulter, at first carrying the literal meaning of attacking or assaulting before settling into the modern sense of offending someone with rude words or actions. The same salire root for leaping survives in surprising relatives such as 'somersault' and 'salient', both of which carry a hidden sense of jumping. Remembering that buried 'leap' helps explain the single l and the -sult spelling, which often surprises writers who expect a doubled letter.

How the word is built

• in- (on, against)
• sult (from Latin saltare/salire: to leap) = literally 'to leap upon'