sneering

1 5.9

Showing dislike and no respect in the face or voice

adjective
/ˈsnɪrɪŋ/

: despectivo

It also explains some rather sneering and belittling responses.

It could be you feeling that your mother was a judgmental, unempathic, snobby, sneering, passive aggressive person.

Examples

The critic's review was filled with sneering comments about the play's poor performance.
He gave her a sneering look that made it clear he did not respect her opinion.
And it's him sort of kind of sneering a little bit.
And on his lips, he wore a frozen, sneering, mocking smile.

Fiction book (1998)
And they have become this sort of sneering ivory tower group of individuals who think that they're the only ones who could properly suss out truth.
There was a restaurant near campus that they frequented that had a hostess who would always ask, "How many?" in a sneering, condescending way (she didn't seem to be too fond of the hippie-type students).

Blog text (4)
During the debate, his sneering tone revealed his contempt for the opposing viewpoint.

Synonyms

snide

vssneering

26 7.5

Saying mocking or hurtful things in a quiet indirect way

expresses contempt more openly through facial or vocal cues

scornful

vssneering

7 5.1

Showing that you think someone does not deserve respect

expresses contempt often via face or tone and can be less intense

supercilious

vssneering

4 8.9

Acting as if you are better than other people

focuses on contempt expressed in face or voice rather than superiority

smirky

vssneering

1 7.8

Having a small proud smile that shows you feel pleased with yourself

conveys contempt mainly through mockery or vocal tone rather than smugness

sneery

vssneering

8.8

Having a rude, mocking look or voice that shows dislike

has identical meaning but is the more common standard form

snidery

vssneering

9.9

Having a mean or hurtful tone that makes people feel small

is contempt shown more by expression or tone than by remarks

Antonyms

respectful

150 1.1

Being polite and showing admiration for someone

How Scornful

contemptuous

17 7.0

derisive

Offensive

9 7.7

sneering

1 5.9

mocking

2 4.5

dismissive

43 5.6

Surface Forms

sneering positive

Morphology

sneering = sneer (transparent) = sneer + ing

A regular adjectival/participial formation from the verb 'sneer'; the meaning is directly predictable from the base.

Etymology

The word sneering comes from an old word for a mean, scornful smile, the kind you make when you 'curl the lip' to show dislike. That's why a sneering look or tone today shows contempt.