scarlet letter
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Backers say the limits avoid saddling arrestees with a digital scarlet letter that can cause lasting harm in employment and housing even after an acquittal or dismissal.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
"A hit list of the haves and the have-nots - a scarlet letter," Hanks said during a heated public meeting at City Hall on Tuesday.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
Controversial newsmakers—Monica Lewinsky, Tonya Harding, Lorena Bobbitt among them—had the term pinioned to them like a scarlet letter, stripping away their accomplishments and leaving only scorned husks of their real selves.
From Salon ● Mar. 23, 2025
“But now I have, like, a scarlet letter and the medical stuff so even if I could go to work, my face would be doing gymnastics.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 12, 2024
There was no scarlet letter with which these people could brand her as the guilty creature they believed her to be; but short of this, what could they not do to her?
From The Doctor's Wife by M. E. (Mary Elizabeth) Braddon
