Ridicule
/ˈrɪd.ɪ.kjuːl/noun
Speech or behavior intended to make someone or something seem foolish or unworthy of respect.
Did you know?English got ridicule through French from Latin ridiculus, meaning “laughable,” which comes from ridēre, “to laugh” — the same ancient root behind words like ridiculous and deride, both carrying the power of public humiliation.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*h₁reǵ-
“A proposed ancestral root associated with straightening or directing, not the source of ridicule”
Latin
Latin
ridēre
“To laugh”
Latin
Latin
ridiculus
“Laughable, amusing, absurd”
Old French
Old French
ridicule
“Mockery; something laughable”
16th Century
English
ridicule
“Mockery or derision”
Modern English
English
ridicule
“Speech or behavior intended to make someone or something seem foolish or unworthy of respect”
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