Changes

==Origin==

==Origin==

Middle French or [[Latin]]; Middle French insulter, from Latin insultare, [[literally]], to spring upon, from in- + saltare to leap

Middle French or [[Latin]]; Middle French insulter, from Latin insultare, [[literally]], to spring upon, from in- + saltare to leap

*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_century 1540]

*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_century 1540]

==Definitions==

==Definitions==

*!: To [[manifest]] arrogant or [[Scorn|scornful]] delight by [[speech]] or [[behavior]]; to exult proudly or contemptuously; to boast, brag, vaunt, [[glory]], triumph, esp. in an insolent or scornful way.  

*!: To [[manifest]] arrogant or [[Scorn|scornful]] delight by [[speech]] or [[behavior]]; to exult proudly or contemptuously; to boast, brag, vaunt, [[glory]], triumph, esp. in an insolent or scornful way.  

An '''insult''' (also called a putdown or called a snap) is an [[expression]], [[statement]] (or sometimes [[behavior]]) which is considered degrading and [[offensive]]. Insults may be [[intentional]] or [[accidental]]. An example of the latter is a well-intended simple [[explanation]], which in [[fact]] is superfluous, but is given due to underestimating the [[intelligence]] or [[knowledge]] of the [[other]].

An '''insult''' (also called a putdown or called a snap) is an [[expression]], [[statement]] (or sometimes [[behavior]]) which is considered degrading and [[offensive]]. Insults may be [[intentional]] or [[accidental]]. An example of the latter is a well-intended simple [[explanation]], which in [[fact]] is superfluous, but is given due to underestimating the [[intelligence]] or [[knowledge]] of the [[other]].

Whether or not [[speech]] or [[behavior]] is insulting in [[practice]], and sometimes by the terms of local [[assault]] statutes, is often a product of the [[subjective]] sense of the insulted party. However, insults to one [[person]] who might not mind such derogatory [[speech]] may indirectly insult others. Many states and local municipalities enforce [[prohibition]]s against rude, [[offensive]] or insulting [[speech]], leaving [[citizens]], law enforcement officers and [[courts]] to decide what is and what is not an insult. The [[concept]] of fighting [[words]] as a form of [[prohibited]] [[speech]] has developed in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurisprudence jurisprudence] of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaplinsky_v._New_Hampshire U.S. constitutional law] concerning terms of disparagement. However, the fighting [[words]] exclusion is construed in an extraordinarily narrow [[manner]], and only the type of insulting speech which is deemed "meaningless" can be suppressed. [[Speech]] containing significant [[literary]], artistic, [[political]], or [[scientific]] significance cannot be suppressed (a test known to attorneys and law students by the [[Memory|mnemonic]] device "slaps"), even if it is wantonly and maliciously insulting, demeaning, or even inciting of racial, [[ethnic]], [[religious]] or [[sexual]] [[hatred]].

Whether or not [[speech]] or [[behavior]] is insulting in [[practice]], and sometimes by the terms of local [[assault]] statutes, is often a product of the [[subjective]] sense of the insulted party. However, insults to one [[person]] who might not mind such derogatory [[speech]] may indirectly insult others. Many states and local municipalities enforce [[prohibition]]s against rude, [[offensive]] or insulting [[speech]], leaving [[citizens]], law enforcement officers and [[courts]] to decide what is and what is not an insult. The [[concept]] of fighting [[words]] as a form of [[prohibited]] [[speech]] has developed in the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurisprudence jurisprudence] of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaplinsky_v._New_Hampshire U.S. constitutional law] concerning terms of disparagement. However, the fighting [[words]] exclusion is construed in an extraordinarily narrow [[manner]], and only the type of insulting speech which is deemed "meaningless" can be suppressed. [[Speech]] containing significant [[literary]], artistic, [[political]], or [[scientific]] significance cannot be suppressed (a test known to attorneys and law students by the [[Memory|mnemonic]] device "slaps"), even if it is wantonly and maliciously insulting, demeaning, or even inciting of racial, [[ethnic]], [[religious]] or [[sexual]] [[hatred]].

The role of insults in the [[social]] sense may be better [[understood]] by an [[appreciation]] of how the term is used in a medical setting. Though a [[popular]] idiom refers to "adding insult to [[injury]]", in a medical [[context]], they are one and the same: physicians [[examine]] injuries resulting from an insult to flesh and bones, caused by various traumatic [[events]]. In [[speech]] and in [[social]] settings, insults are [[words]] which tend to injure or damage the [[psyche]]. In [[humor]], insults may be exchanged in much the same way as fighters exchange blows in [[training]], to [[develop]] a [[resistance]] to the [[pain]] of mild injuries, or to spar with no real [[intention]] of causing any serious injury.

The role of insults in the [[social]] sense may be better [[understood]] by an [[appreciation]] of how the term is used in a medical setting. Though a [[popular]] idiom refers to "adding insult to [[injury]]", in a medical [[context]], they are one and the same: physicians [[examine]] injuries resulting from an insult to flesh and bones, caused by various traumatic [[events]]. In [[speech]] and in [[social]] settings, insults are [[words]] which tend to injure or damage the [[psyche]]. In [[humor]], insults may be exchanged in much the same way as fighters exchange blows in [[training]], to [[develop]] a [[resistance]] to the [[pain]] of mild injuries, or to spar with no real [[intention]] of causing any serious injury.