condemn
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Middle English condempnen, from Old French condamner, from Latin condemnāre (“to sentence, condemn, blame”), from com- + damnāre (“to harm, condemn, damn”), from damnum (“damage, injury, loss”). Displaced native Middle English fordemen (from Old English fordeman (“condemn, sentence, doom”) > Modern English fordeem.
Pronunciation[edit]
Verb[edit]
condemn (third-person singular simple present condemns, present participle condemning, simple past and past participle condemned)
- (transitive) To strongly criticise or denounce; to excoriate the perpetrators of.
- The president condemned the terrorists.
- 1722, William Wollaston, “Sect. V. Truths relating to the Deity. Of his exiſtence, perfection, providence, &c.”, in The Religion of Nature Delineated[1], page 81:
- Ignorant and ſuperſtitious wretches meaſure the actions of letterd and philoſophical men by the tattle of their nurſes or illiterate parents and companions, or by the faſhion of the country : and people of differing religions judge and condemn each other by their own tenents ; when both of them cannot be in the right, and it is well if either of them are.
- (transitive) To judicially pronounce (someone) guilty.
- (transitive) To judicially announce a verdict upon a finding of guilt; To sentence
- The judge condemned him to death.
- She was condemned to life in prison.
- (transitive) To confer eternal divine punishment upon.
- (transitive) To adjudge (a building) as being unfit for habitation.
- The house was condemned after it was badly damaged by fire.
- (transitive) To adjudge (building or construction work) as of unsatisfactory quality, requiring the work to be redone.
- (transitive) To adjudge (food or drink) as being unfit for human consumption.
- To declare something to be unfit for use, or further use.
- 1962 December, “Motive Power Miscellany: Western Region”, in Modern Railways, page 425:
- There was a massive slaughter of W.R. steam power at the conclusion of the summer timetable. In all, 169 locomotives were condemned.
- (transitive) To determine and declare (property) to be assigned to public use. See eminent domain.
- (transitive, law) To declare (a vessel) to be forfeited to the government, to be a prize, or to be unfit for service.
Synonyms[edit]
Antonyms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
to scold sharply
|
to pronounce guilty
|
to confer eternal divine punishment upon
|
to adjudge as unfit for habitation
|
to adjudge food or drink as unfit for human consumption
|
to declare property to be assigned to public use
|
to declare a vessel forfeited or unfit for service
|
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Further reading[edit]
- “condemn”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “condemn”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
- “condemn”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
Categories:
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms derived from Old French
- English terms derived from Latin
- English 2-syllable words
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio links
- Rhymes:English/ɛm
- Rhymes:English/ɛm/2 syllables
- English lemmas
- English verbs
- English transitive verbs
- English terms with quotations
- English terms with usage examples
- en:Law