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disdaining

Verb
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Expressing contempt or scorn toward something as unworthy; in poetry, this verb conveys moral superiority, haughtiness, or rejection, often characterizing a speaker’s attitude toward vice or mediocrity.

Detailed Definition
To disdain is to look down on or reject something with scorn. Joyce uses the participle here to give the riders an arrogant, contemptuous attitude toward the reins they refuse to control.
Example
Example in poetry:
“Disdaining the reins, with fluttering whips, the charioteers” (classical-style image); “Disdaining all restraint, the horse ran free” (verb participle); “Proud, disdaining pity” (emotional stance); “She walked past praise, disdaining its small coin” (contemporary example)
Additional Notes
This form is less common in everyday reading, and the line uses it in a more literary sense of contempt.; Found in the poem, I Hear an Army by James Joyce
Also Known As
scorning despising rejecting deriding
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