out·rage
ˈau̇t-ˌrāj 
1
: an act of violence or brutality
… arranged outrages and assassinations …—
Anthony West
Anthony West2
3
: the anger and resentment aroused by injury or insult
Many people expressed outrage at the court's decision.
outraged; outraging
1
a
: rape
b
: to violate the standards or principles of
… he has outraged respectability past endurance.—John Braine
John Braine2
: to arouse anger or resentment in usually by some grave offense
was outraged by the accusation
Examples of outrage in a Sentence
Noun
Many people expressed outrage at the court's decision.
Public outrage over the scandal was great.
The rule is an outrage against women.
This is an outrage! I won't allow this kind of behavior to continue.
Verb
His comments outraged nearly everyone in the room.
the spiteful comment outraged her so much that she's still holding a grudge
Recent Examples on the Web
ABC News, 13 May 2026
The swiftness with which Blondie was killed and the seeming lack of consideration for the fate of her offspring sparked outrage as, typically, cubs would remain close to their mother for the first 18 months of their life.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
Steve Large, CBS News, 14 May 2026
But the video, which came out three weeks ago, has outraged many of the business class.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, 6 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for outrage
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Noun
Israel's place in the contest has become contentious as outrage over the carnage in Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon and Iran has grown from Rome to Madrid with massive popular protests and European Union politicians mulling new sanctions.
—ABC News, 13 May 2026
The swiftness with which Blondie was killed and the seeming lack of consideration for the fate of her offspring sparked outrage as, typically, cubs would remain close to their mother for the first 18 months of their life.
—Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 13 May 2026
Verb
Kris Rogers is a Land Park community advocate outraged by the new program, which allows needle exchanges in a mobile RV positioned within several library branch parking lots.
—Steve Large, CBS News, 14 May 2026
But the video, which came out three weeks ago, has outraged many of the business class.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN Money, 6 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for outrage
Cite this Entry
“Outrage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outrage. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
outrage
1 of 2 noun
out·rage
ˈau̇t-ˌrāj
1
: a violent or brutal act
2
: an act that hurts someone or shows disrespect for a person's feelings
3
: the angry feelings caused by injury or insult
outrage
2 of 2 verb
outraged; outraging
1
: to cause to suffer violent injury or abuse
2
: to cause to feel anger or resentment
Etymology
Noun
from early French outrage "an act of violence or brutality" from outre "beyond" (from Latin ultra "beyond") and -age "action"
Legal Definition
outrage
noun
out·rage
ˈau̇t-ˌrāj
1
: a deeply offensive or violent act
2
: the tort of intentionally inflicting emotional distress
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