From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishinsultin‧sult1 /ɪnˈsʌlt/ ●●○ verb [transitive] 1 INSULTOFFENDto offend someone by saying or doing something they think is rude Nobody insults my family and gets away with it! I hope Andy won’t be insulted if I don’t come.insult somebody by doing something They insult us by ignoring our complaints.2 → insult somebody’s intelligence→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
insult• They offered me $20 for a whole day's work - I felt really insulted.• Jarvis was fired for insulting a customer.• Those who invoke it are signalling an equivocal stance on slavery, at best, and thus are insulting all black people.• She went out of her way to pass near him, and he went out of his way to insult her.• Then the chief insulted him and the pony, saying the animal looked just like a mud pony.• She hadn't called him ever since she had insulted him.• You insult my intelligence with your crude methods!• questions that insult the intelligence of the interviewee• I want to insult this guy.• I won't insult you by explaining the rules of the game.• In some cultures, you insult your host if you do not accept their offer of food.insult somebody by doing something• He insulted the delegates by refusing to shake their hands.insultin‧sult2 /ˈɪnsʌlt/ ●●○ noun [countable] 1 INSULTOFFENDa remark or action that is offensive or deliberately rude She was shouting insults at her boyfriend. $200 for all that work? It’s an insult. Their offer was so low I took it as an insult (=thought it was meant to be an insult).2 → be an insult to somebody’s intelligence → add insult to injury at add(8)Examples from the Corpus
insult• But the finger stayed down and, to add insult, Sri Lanka's batsmen trotted a cheeky leg bye.• Adding insult to injury, a double cross awaits our luckless hero in the final stanza.• I said something about her new hairstyle and she took it as an insult.• Gable regards this as an insult to the audience handed out by critics who consider themselves on a higher level.• Melinda Mullins -- a presence to remember -- plays the prima donna, Hilary, who tosses off an insult a minute.• You mustn't wear your shoes inside the temple -- it is a great insult.• In such a case, honest insult, based upon fact, would make us feel more comfortable.• People were hurling insults at the players as they walked off the pitch.• The longer he talked, the more insults the crowd yelled at him.• She took it as a personal insult that you did not ask her opinion about your book.• Would she scream insults, or perhaps cling on to him for grim death and beg for another chance?• Outside the pub, a drunk was shouting insults at everyone who came past.• Despite the threats, the insults, the accusations, had she thought he would never physically strike her?Origin insult1 (1500-1600) French insulter, from Latin insultare “to jump on, insult”, from saltare “to jump” 