stigma

Definitions

From Greek stigma, the mark left by a brand or tattoo — the prick that labeled a slave or criminal. The literal pricked-in mark became figurative: a stigma is a mark of shame society pins on you. The botanical sense (the tip of a pistil) keeps the original 'point' idea.

Why It Means This

Ancient Greeks literally pricked or branded marks onto slaves and criminals — that mark was the stigma. The physical brand faded but the metaphor stayed razor-sharp: a stigma is an invisible mark of disgrace that others read off you, attached to illness, poverty, or behavior. To carry a stigma is to be branded without a literal iron.

Common Collocations

• 1.social stigma社会污名
• 2.stigma attached to与……相关的耻辱
• 3.carry a stigma背负污名
• 4.reduce the stigma减少污名
• 5.stigma surrounding围绕……的污名

Example Sentences

• 1.

  There is still a stigma attached to seeking therapy in some cultures.

• 2.

  Campaigns aim to remove the stigma around mental illness.

• 3.

  Pollen grains stick to the sticky stigma at the center of the flower.