/ kənˈtempt; NAmE / noun [ U , sing. ]
1.
contempt (for sb/sth) the feeling that sb/sth is without value and deserves no respect at all :
She looked at him with contempt .
I shall treat that suggestion with the contempt it deserves.
His treatment of his children is beneath contempt (= so unacceptable that it is not even worth feeling contempt for) .
Politicians seem to be generally held in contempt by ordinary people.
They had shown a contempt for the values she thought important.
2.
contempt for sth a lack of worry or fear about rules, danger, etc. :
The firefighters showed a contempt for their own safety.
His remarks betray a staggering contempt for the truth (= are completely false) .
3.
= contempt of court :
He could be jailed for two years for contempt.
She was held in contempt for refusing to testify.
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IDIOMS
see familiarity
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WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : from Latin contemptus , from contemnere , from con- (expressing intensive force) + temnere despise.