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Webster 1913 Edition
Contemptible
Con-tempt′i-ble
,Adj.
1.
Worthy of contempt; deserving of scorn or disdain; mean; vile; despicable.
Milton.
The arguments of tyranny are as
contemptible
as its force is dreadful. Burke.
2.
Despised; scorned; neglected; abject.
Locke.
3.
Insolent; scornful; contemptuous.
[Obs.]
Syn. – Despicable; abject; vile; mean; base; paltry; worthless; sorry; pitiful; scurrile.
See Contemptuous
. – Contemptible
, Despicable
, Pitiful
, Paltry
. Despicable is stronger than contemptible, as despise is stronger than contemn. It implies keen disapprobation, with a mixture of anger. A man is despicable chiefly for low actions which mark his life, such as servility, baseness, or mean adulation. A man is contemptible for mean qualities which distinguish his character, especially those which show him to be weak, foolish, or worthless. Treachery is despicable, egotism is contemptible. Pitiful and paltry are applied to cases which are beneath anger, and are simply contemptible in a high degree. Webster 1828 Edition
Contemptible
CONTEMPTIBLE
,Adj.
1.
Worthy of contempt; that deserves scorn, or disdain; despicable; mean; vile. Intemperance is a contemptible vice. No plant or animal is so contemptible as not to exhibit evidence of the wonderful power and wisdom of the Creator.The pride that leads to dueling is a contemptible passion.
2.
Apt to despise; contemptuous. [Not legitimate.]