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A word or phrase is pejorative if it implies contempt or disapproval. The adjective pejorative is synonymous with derogatory, derisive, and dyslogistic. When used as an adjective, pejorative has two meanings: (1) tending to make or become worse, and (2) tending to disparage or belittle. ^[1] When used as a noun, pejorative means "a belittling or disparaging word or expression". ^[2] Since meanings change over time, an up-to-date dictionary should be consulted for information on specific words. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... A word or phrase is pejorative if it expresses contempt or disapproval. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Wiktionary (a portmanteau of wiki and dictionary) is a multilingual, Web-based project to create a free content dictionary, available in over 150 languages. ...

Etymology

Pejorative comes from the Latin pejoratus, "made worse", and made a surprisingly late entry in written English, 1882, probably deriving from a contemporary French usage, péjoratif. [1]. It is so frequently spelled as perjorative that the Oxford English Dictionary website contains a FAQ entry about this spelling. Latin is an ancient Indo-European language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ... The Oxford English Dictionary print set The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a dictionary published by the Oxford University Press (OUP), and is the most successful dictionary of the English language, (not to be confused with the one-volume Oxford Dictionary of English, formerly New Oxford Dictionary of English, of... FAQ is an abbreviation for Frequently Asked Question(s). The term refers to listed questions and answers, all supposed to be frequently asked in some context, and pertaining to a particular topic. ...

References

Dictionary.com [2]

1. ^ http://dictionary.reference.com/wordoftheday/archive/2003/10/03.html
2. ^ http://dictionary.reference.com/wordoftheday/archive/2003/10/03.html

See also

• Euphemism treadmill
• Hypocoristic, a pet name (antonym)
• Semantic change
• Taunt
• Pejorative suffix
• Pejorative terms for people
• Historical linguistics
• Term of disparagement
• List of ethnic slurs