Word.ws English Dictionary

How to use condescending in a sentence

11 example sentences · adjective, noun

Condescending means assuming a tone of superiority, or a patronizing attitude. Example: “Quit talking to me in that condescending tone! You always treat me like a child!”

Examples of condescending by meaning

adjectiveAssuming a tone of superiority, or a patronizing attitude.

  • Quit talking to me in that condescending tone! You always treat me like a child!
  • The housekeeper, a very decorative brunette of thirty-five with a pseudo-English accent, greeted him with a mixture of grateful effusion and condescending patronage.1946, William Hatfield, Buffalo Jim, Oxford: Geoffrey Cumberlege, page 70

More sentences with condescending

  • I'm sorry if I came off as condescending; that wasn't my intention.From the entry come off
  • I’m funny and warm and devoted, but I can be obnoxious and condescending.2011, Alexis Stewart, Whateverland: Learning to Live Here, Wiley, →ISBN, page 61. From the entry superirresistible
  • He was condescending to me, presuming a goodness-gracious-me prejudice on my part.2001, New Statesman. From the entry goodness gracious me
  • He clichéd at me in a perky, condescending tone.2015, Shonda Rhimes, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person. From the entry cliché
  • When talking about policies, he often said the president “gets it,” a condescending Bidenism for “agrees with me.”2013, Michael Grunwald, The New New Deal: The Hidden Story of Change in the Obama Era, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 256. From the entry Bidenism
  • Perhaps regarded as one of her funniest lines, she can taunt the enemy after eliminating them by saying, "Wow, cringe," in a fittingly condescending tone.2022 October 21, Joanna Koziol, “D.Va Is Overwatch 2's Most Toxic Character”, in Screen Rant, archived from the original on 04 Nov 2022. From the entry skill issue
  • Those who splain may have the intent of helping the situation, but the actual impact of their actions can feel condescending or insulting.2019, Jennifer Brown, How to Be an Inclusive Leader: Creating Trust, Cooperation, and Community across Differences, Berrett-Koehler…. From the entry splain
  • Karim found Sudhir disgusting when he was inebriate, as he was totally unpredictable and thoroughly inappropriate, albeit abusive and condescending; truly a rear-end of a donkey.2019, Onaly A. Kapasi, Tectonic Dyssynchrony. From the entry inebriate
  • Mocking the men who hurt us, as mockable as they are, starts to feel like acquiescing to the most condescending of catcalls: “You look better when you smile.”2016 May 28, Jessica Valenti, The Guardian. From the entry mockable

Meaning of condescending

  1. adjective Assuming a tone of superiority, or a patronizing attitude.
  2. noun An act of condescension.

Full definition of condescending

Questions about condescending in a sentence

How do you use condescending in a sentence?
Condescending is used as an adjective and noun. For example: “Quit talking to me in that condescending tone! You always treat me like a child!”
What is a short sentence with condescending?
“He clichéd at me in a perky, condescending tone.”
What does condescending mean?
Condescending means assuming a tone of superiority, or a patronizing attitude.

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: condescending (page history and authors) and the entries each sentence comes from. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws chose the sentences, left out offensive ones and quotations older than 1900, and marked the word in each. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this page: “How to use condescending in a sentence.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/sentences/condescending. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.