verb

missbilligen

disapprove

Etwas nicht gut finden oder mit dem Verhalten von jemandem unzufrieden sein und das auch deutlich zeigen.

Definition & meaning

To missbilligen means to feel or express disapproval of something. It is used when a person finds an action, a behavior, or a decision to be wrong, improper, or unacceptable. This word carries a formal tone and often implies a judgment based on moral, ethical, or social standards. It does not just mean "to dislike," but rather "to condemn" or "to reject" something based on a specific set of values.

Grammar & Word origin

The word is a weak (regular) verb. Its principal forms are:

Präsens: missbilligt
Präteritum: missbilligte
Perfekt: hat missbilligt

It is a transitive verb, meaning it typically takes a direct object in the accusative case.

Morphologically, it is composed of two parts:

miss-: A prefix used to indicate something negative, wrong, or a failure (similar to the English "mis-").
billigen: A verb meaning to approve, authorize, or sanction.

Historically, billigen is derived from the adjective billig. While billig is mostly used today to mean "cheap," its original meaning was "fair," "equitable," or "appropriate." Therefore, missbilligen literally translates to finding something "not appropriate" or "unfair."