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.
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
Listings in these neighborhoods carry a proverbial scarlet letter as Palm Springs becomes a city of rentable homes versus nonrentable homes.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 1, 2024
It is not a scarlet letter enough for me that detestable owners are merely forced — or encouraged — to sell teams they ruined in myriad ways.
From Washington Post • Apr. 19, 2023
But a positive test result still carries a taint; like a scarlet letter declaring to the world that you have done something wrong.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2022
It was none the less a fact, however, that, in the eyes of the very men who spoke thus, the scarlet letter had the effect of the cross on a nun's bosom.
From The Scarlet Letter by Foote, Mary Hallock
