looked down on

VERB

hold in contempt

Synonyms

WEAK

abhor contemn despise disdain scorn scout sneer spurn turn nose up at

Antonyms

WEAK

approve honor laud look up to praise

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Neighboring towns looked down on its working-class residents and the beat-up motels along Beach Boulevard, which cleaves the city in half.

From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026

During the cloud disruption two decades ago, many incumbent enterprise software makers looked down on a host of new browser-based applications.

From Barron's • Mar. 4, 2026

“She looked down on people she didn’t agree with.”

From Slate • Dec. 18, 2025

“There’s something about being around other Christians, knowing you won’t be mocked or looked down on as stupid for believing in the Bible,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 25, 2025

I had always looked down on my mother's college, as it was coed, and filled with people who couldn't get scholarships to the big eastern colleges.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath