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condescending

 [kon-duh-sen-ding]   Origin

con·de·scend·ing

   [kon-duh-sen-ding]
adjective
showing or implying a usually patronizing descent from dignity or superiority: They resented the older neighbors' condescending cordiality.
Origin:
1630–40; condescend + -ing2

Related forms
con·de·scend·ing·ly, adverb
non·con·de·scend·ing, adjective
non·con·de·scend·ing·ly, adverb
non·con·de·scend·ing·ness, noun
un·con·de·scend·ing, adjective
EXPAND
un·con·de·scend·ing·ly, adverb
COLLAPSE

Synonyms
patronizing, disdainful, supercilious.

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Condescending is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged

con·de·scend

   [kon-duh-send]
verb (used without object)
1.
to behave as if one is conscious of descending from a superior position, rank, or dignity.
2.
to stoop or deign to do something: He would not condescend to misrepresent the facts.
3.
to put aside one's dignity or superiority voluntarily and assume equality with one regarded as inferior: He condescended to their intellectual level in order to be understood.
4.
Obsolete.
a.
to yield.
b.
to assent.
Origin:
1300–50; Middle English condescenden < Late Latin condēscendere (see con-, descend); replacing Middle English condescendre < Middle French

Related forms
con·des·cend·er, con·des·cend·ent, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To condescending
Collins
World English Dictionary
condescending (ˌkɒndɪˈsɛndɪŋ)
 
—adj
showing or implying condescension by stooping to the level of one's inferiors, esp in a patronizing way
 
condescendingly
 
—adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

condescend
mid-14c., from O.Fr. condescendere, from L.L. condescendere "to let oneself down," from L. com- "together" + descendere "descend." Originally "to yield deferentially;" sense of "to sink willingly to equal terms with inferiors" is from 1610s.
EXPAND

condescending
1707, from condescend. Originally in a positive sense (of God, the Savior, etc.) until late 18c. Related: Condescendingly (1650s).
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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