phrasal verb · informal
look down on
UK/lʊk ˈdaʊn ɒn/US/lʊk ˈdaʊn ɑn/look·DOWN·on
speakingtask2
to feel superior to someone; to regard someone with contempt
Examples
“People who look down on others for being different show prejudice.”
“She felt looked down on because of her accent.”
“Don't look down on entry-level jobs; they teach important skills.”
Band 8 sentence
“In many societies people still look down on manual labour, despite its economic importance.”
Collocations
- look down on someone
- be looked down on
Word family
look down on verblooked down on verb (past)looking down on verb (gerund)
Common mistakes
look down→look down on
look down someone→look down on someone
Say it for a higher band
5dislike→6despise→7+look down on
Synonyms
despise
Easily confused
disdain
“She looked at his offer with disdain and walked away.”
Related words
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