opprobrium
/əˈpɹəʊ.bɹɪ.əm/
opprobrium means A cause, object, or situation of disgrace or shame. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 79 out of 100.
opprobrium is pronounced /əˈpɹəʊ.bɹɪ.əm/.
Why “opprobrium” is a great word
OPPROBRIUM — [Noun] Harsh public criticism, scornful contempt, or disgrace arising from shameful conduct. From the Latin opprobrium ("disgrace, infamy, reproach"), from ob- ("toward") + probrum ("disgrace, shame"), the latter ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pro- ("forward") + *bʰer- ("to bear, carry"). First attested in English in the mid-17th century. Unlike "infamy," which centers on notorious reputation, or "censure," which denotes formal reprimand, opprobrium is the scorching atmosphere of collective moral judgment. It is the turned back of a crowd, the indelible stain on a legacy, and the silent, frigid space that grows around a pariah—the social weapon that exiles a soul not from a place, but from the human circle.
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin opprobrium, obprobrium (“a reproach, a taunt; disgrace, shame; dishonour; scandal”, noun), from opprobrō, obprobrō (“to reproach, upbraid; to taunt”) + -ium (suffix forming abstract nouns). Opprobrō, obprobrō are derived from ob- (prefix meaning ‘towards’) + probrum (“disgrace, shame; abuse, insult”, noun) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *pro- (“forward; toward”) + *bʰer- (“to bear, carry”), in the sense of something brought up to reproach a person). The plural form opprobria is borrowed from Latin opprobria. Cognates * French opprobre * Italian obbrobrio * Portuguese ouprobio (obsolete), opróbrio * Spanish oprobrio (obsolete), oprobio
noun
- A cause, object, or situation of disgrace or shame.“As there are certain malignant diseases which have been denominated the opprobria of medicine, so there are particular maladies of our social condition, which may be considered the opprobria of legislation. Amongst the most inveterate of these are the poor laws.”
- Disgrace or bad reputation arising from exceedingly shameful behaviour; ignominy.“Let me add that it is the great deſideratum, by which alone this form of government can be reſcued from the opprobrium under which it has ſo long labored, and be recommended to the eſteem and adoption of mankind.”
- Scornful contempt or reproach; (countable) an instance of this.“[…]from that strict rectitude in which I have been accustomed to walk and to view my actions, and which, notwithstanding the unjust opprobrium cast upon me, I find to be an invincible support and shield.”
- Behaviour which is disgraceful or shameful.