as in vile
not following or in accordance with standards of honor and decency
the detestable actions of a nasty little man
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Recent Examples of detestable
Remember Paul Reiser's detestable Carter Burke in Aliens?
—
Randall Colburn, EW.com, 24 Apr. 2025
Top-notch casting is the cherry on top, with Lily James as the supremely likable Cinderella, Richard Madden as her down-to-earth prince, Cate Blanchett as the detestable stepmother with her own imperfect backstory, and Helena Bonham Carter as one lovably flighty fairy godmother.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 Mar. 2025
Can’t wait for the Stanley Cup window to close on Team Tank, easily the most detestable team in the League.
—Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 15 Mar. 2025
Overall, the film has gotten a mixed reception, and Strong’s character is pretty detestable.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detestable
Randall Colburn, EW.com, 24 Apr. 2025
Top-notch casting is the cherry on top, with Lily James as the supremely likable Cinderella, Richard Madden as her down-to-earth prince, Cate Blanchett as the detestable stepmother with her own imperfect backstory, and Helena Bonham Carter as one lovably flighty fairy godmother.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 Mar. 2025
Can’t wait for the Stanley Cup window to close on Team Tank, easily the most detestable team in the League.
—Daniel Nugent-Bowman, The Athletic, 15 Mar. 2025
Overall, the film has gotten a mixed reception, and Strong’s character is pretty detestable.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for detestable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for detestable
Adjective
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Arriving in London, Jess has a chance encounter with Felix (Will Sharpe), a broke musician, in a particularly vile pub toilet.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
17 July 2025
-
The tweets, a vile departure from Elmo’s often inspiring and motivational social media cadence, were sent on July 13 and promptly taken down.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
14 July 2025
Adjective
-
Basically, how others will judge you for moving on, if you’ll be seen as incompetent or immoral for quitting.—
Vicki Salemi,
Boston Herald,
20 July 2025
-
With his opaque history and sources of wealth, his super-powerful friends and his immoral appetites, Epstein became the perfect avatar for our at-home Hollywood heroism.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
19 July 2025
Adjective
-
The restaurant violated 17 standards, including bugs inside the restaurant and dirty kitchen equipment.—
Evan Moore
July 18,
Charlotte Observer,
18 July 2025
-
What to look for in a quality cat fountain Filtration system Stagnant or dirty water is dangerous to pets, especially cats with a delicate immune system.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
18 July 2025
Adjective
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For example, wildfires can not only cause direct injury and damage to people and property but can also spew all sorts of nasty stuff into the air.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
19 July 2025
-
Morton signed a one-year, $15 million deal with the Orioles this past offseason as a starting pitcher who had established himself with 17 years of MLB experience and a nasty curveball.—
Said Bravo,
CNN Money,
18 July 2025
Adjective
-
Each of us should demand our local leaders challenge every one of the immoral and cruel state laws and the Gestapo-like raids and inhumane detainments carried out by ICE agents.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
15 July 2025
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Even critics who considered his policies cruel and racist – and there were many – admitted that behind the bluster there was the charm of a true believer.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
12 July 2025
Adjective
-
The death of Pope Francis, sadly, has not escaped the attention of these truly contemptible criminals.—
Davey Winder,
Forbes.com,
24 Apr. 2025
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At the time, some of LeBron’s critics saw this as contemptible.—
Ross Andersen,
The Atlantic,
16 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The deliberate misrepresentation of his record by Moore is truly despicable.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
9 July 2025
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As Bertram, Gabriel Brown played well the spoiled and despicable cad.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 July 2025
Adjective
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Over time, this can create a vicious cycle where poor sleep and chronic anxiety feed into each other, creating a loop that damages your well-being.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
22 July 2025
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There was a scary moment later in the third quarter when Charlotte’s James Banks III hit Sacramento’s Dylan Cardwell with a vicious elbow to the face.—
Jason Anderson,
Sacbee.com,
21 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Detestable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/detestable. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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