reprehensible
adjective
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It may be easy to grasp that reprehensible is all about blame, but the word’s origins tell a grabbier story. The word comes from the Latin reprehendere (literally “to hold back”), a combination of re- and prehendere, meaning “to grasp.” Prehendere is at the root of other grasp-related words, among them apprehend, used when grabbing hold of bad guys, comprehend, used when it’s concepts that are grasped, and prehensile, used to describe anatomical features—for example, a monkey’s tail or an elephant’s trunk—that grasp especially by wrapping around. Grasp these words, and there’s nothing reprehensible about your grasp on this little corner of the English lexicon.
Synonyms
Examples of reprehensible in a Sentence
Sean Neumann, People.com, 16 Oct. 2024
What an indefensible, reprehensible & disrespectful thing to have done.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2024
Lois herself attempts to explain her reprehensible actions which reveals a disturbing family history and an addiction to gambling.
—Marc Berman, Forbes, 7 Oct. 2024
The young senator even managed to turn around a question on family separation, one of the more reprehensible episodes of the Trump years.
—Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 2 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for reprehensible 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'reprehensible.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near reprehensible
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“Reprehensible.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/reprehensible. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
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reprehensible
adjective
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