in·sult·ing
in-ˈsəl-tiŋ 
: giving or intended to give offense : being or containing an insult (see insult entry 2 sense 1)
Without the wit, of course, such sentiments would be construed as deeply insulting …—
The American Scholar
The American Scholar… pasted insulting bumper stickers on their vehicles …—James A. Michener
James A. Michener… considered the proposal so impracticable as to be insulting.—Alice Adams
Alice AdamsThe book is "dumbed down" to an almost insulting level.—Joel Bangilan
Joel Bangilan
insultingly
adverb
But always his triumphs are the triumphs of a highly sensitive man: a man must feel insults before he can so insultingly and splendidly avenge them.
—G. K. Chesterton
G. K. Chesterton
He is a gifted preacher, fashioning sermons that are neither inaccessibly erudite nor insultingly shallow.
—Kevin Sack
Kevin Sack
insulting
2 of 2present participle of insult entry 1
Examples of insulting in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Chase Jordan, Charlotte Observer, 26 Mar. 2025
To suggest civil servants don’t work hard and could do more for less is insulting to the hundreds of thousands of hard-working federal workers earning their paychecks today.
—Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2025
The title makes this woozy mid-tempo number sound like a Black Power statement, but its lyrics also ask African Americans to stop using insulting terms for white people.
—Rob Tannenbaum, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2025
Formula One's governing body, the FIA, has categorized certain actions and behaviors as 'misconduct,' which include insulting or inappropriate language and gestures.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for insulting
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Adjective
Sean Griffin, local executive council president for the union, said the pay is insulting.
—Chase Jordan, Charlotte Observer, 26 Mar. 2025
To suggest civil servants don’t work hard and could do more for less is insulting to the hundreds of thousands of hard-working federal workers earning their paychecks today.
—Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2025
The title makes this woozy mid-tempo number sound like a Black Power statement, but its lyrics also ask African Americans to stop using insulting terms for white people.
—Rob Tannenbaum, New York Times, 11 Feb. 2025
Formula One's governing body, the FIA, has categorized certain actions and behaviors as 'misconduct,' which include insulting or inappropriate language and gestures.
—Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for insulting
Cite this Entry
“Insulting.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/insulting. Accessed 17 Apr. 2025.
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