plural deplorables
: a deplorable person : someone who is deserving of censure or condemnation
—usually plural
In the media, Chicago Youths are portrayed as deplorables. … I'm here to tell you that's not the vast majority of our kids.—Bennie Henry, quoted in N'DIGO (Chicago, Illinois)
If you want to win the culture war, you can't sit on the sidelines; you must show up and fight. And whatever flaws they might have, that's what these grassroots deplorables do.—Haley Kennington
They speak to the lived experience of a public that is ignored, overburdened, misrepresented and denounced by some as a collection of "deplorables."—Ahmed Bouzid
You know, to just be grossly generalistic, you could put half of Trump's supporters into what I call the basket of deplorables. Right? [Laughter/applause]. The racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, Islamophobic — you name it. And unfortunately there are people like that.—Hillary Rodham Clinton
Cite this Entry
“Deplorable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deplorable. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.
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