different between outrageous vs nefarious

English

Alternative forms

• outragious (archaic)

Etymology

From Anglo-Norman outrageus, Middle French outrageus, from outrage; equivalent to outrage +? -ous.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /a?t??e?d??s/
• Rhymes: -e?d??s

Adjective

outrageous (comparative more outrageous, superlative most outrageous)

1. Violating morality or decency; provoking indignation or affront. [from 14th c.]
   • c. 1601, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, First Folio 1623:

     To be, or not to be, that is the Question: / Whether 'tis Nobler in the minde to suffer / The Slings and Arrowes of outragious Fortune, / Or to take Armes against a Sea of troubles, / And by opposing end them [...].

   • 2011, Paul Wilson, The Guardian, 19 Oct 2011:

     The Irish-French rugby union whistler Alain Rolland was roundly condemned for his outrageous decision that lifting a player into the air then turning him over so he falls on his head or neck amounted to dangerous play.

2. Transgressing reasonable limits; extravagant, immoderate. [from 14th c.]
   • 2004, David Smith, The Observer, 19 Dec 2004:

     Audience members praised McKellen, best known for Shakespearean roles and as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings, for his show-stealing turn as Twankey in a series of outrageous glitzy dresses.

3. Shocking; exceeding conventional behaviour; provocative. [from 18th c.]
   • 2001, Imogen Tilden, The Guardian, 8 Dec 2001:

     "It's something I really am quite nervous about," he admits, before adding, with relish: "You have to be a bit outrageous and challenging sometimes."

4. (now rare) Fierce, violent. [from 14th c.]
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, III.4:

     For els my feeble vessell, crazd and crackt / Through thy strong buffets and outrageous blowes, / Cannot endure, but needes it must be wrackt [...].

Derived terms

• outrageously
• outrageousness

Related terms

• outrage

Translations

Further reading

• outrageous in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• outrageous in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

English

Etymology

From Latin nef?rius (“execrable, abominable”), from nef?s (“something contrary to divine law, an impious deed, sin, crime”), from ne- (“not”) + f?s (“the dictates of religion, divine law”), which is related to Latin for (“I speak, I say”) and cognate to Ancient Greek ???? (ph?mí, “I say”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /n??f???i.?s/
• (UK) IPA^(key): /n??f????.?s/
• Rhymes: -??ri?s

Adjective

nefarious (comparative more nefarious, superlative most nefarious)

1. Sinful, villainous, criminal, or wicked, especially when noteworthy or notorious for such characteristics.

   Synonyms: evil, iniquitous, sinister, underhanded, vile, good-for-nothing; see also Thesaurus:evil

   • 1828, James Fenimore Cooper, The Red Rover, ch. 2:

     "If the vessel be no fair-trading slaver, nor a common cruiser of his Majesty, it is as tangible as the best man's reasoning, that she may be neither more nor less than the ship of that nefarious pirate the Red Rover."

   • 1877, Anthony Trollope, The Life of Cicero, ch. 9:

     Mommsen . . . declares that Catiline in particular was "one of the most nefarious men in that nefarious age. His villanies belong to the criminal records, not to history."

   • 1921, P. G. Wodehouse, The Indiscretions of Archie, ch. 26:

     The fact that the room was still in darkness made it obvious that something nefarious was afoot. Plainly there was dirty work in preparation at the cross-roads.

   • 2009 Oct. 14, Monica Davey, "Fact Checker Finds Falsehoods in Remarks," New York Times (retrieved 12 May 2014):

     “I try to let everyone back here in Minnesota know exactly the nefarious activities that are taking place in Washington.”

   Aliens have a nefarious connotation in many science fiction books.

Usage notes

• Commonly used in contexts involving villainous plans, conspiracies, or actions, as in:

• 1909, Bram Stoker, The Lady of the Shroud, book 7:

The whole nefarious scheme was one of the "put-up jobs" which are part of the dirty work of a certain order of statecraft.

Derived terms

• nefariously
• nefariousness

Translations

References

• nefarious at OneLook Dictionary Search

Anagrams

• isofurane