a. Obs. [a. OF. vituperieus (implied in the adv. vituperieusement; cf. Sp. vituperioso), or ad. late or med.L. vituperiōsus (Diefenbach), f. vituperium VITUPERY: see -IOUS.]
1. Vituperative, strongly abusive or censorious.
1604. Drayton, Moyses, I. 2. Muse, I inuoke the vtmost of thy might,… Gainst the vile Atheists vituperious sting.
1632. Lithgow, Trav., X. 490. To confound the calumnious and vituperious Papists.
1667. Waterhouse, Fire Lond., 88. Vituperious Sarcasms, Secret rejoycings at their ruins.
2. Worthy of blame, vituperable; hence, shameful, discreditable, disgraceful, ignominious.
1612. trans. Benvenuto’s Passenger, I. iv. 281. O what doe I see, and what doe I heare in my dayes, what vituperious crimes?
1624. Gag for Pope, 12. Clothed with the Sambenito, a punishment as vituperious as the carting of Bawdes in England.
1688. R. Holme, Armoury, II. 15/2. The bearing of these Hellish Vituperious, horrid and vile things, is to deter … the beholder from becoming like them.
Hence † Vituperiously adv., vituperatively; shamefully. Obs.
1632. Lithgow, Trav., I. (1906), 3. The name and fame of the most righteous alive,… be thus diversly taxed and vituperiously calumniated.
1650. Howell, Giraffi’s Rev. Naples, I. 130. So they concluded to die sooner,… then to live so vituperiously in such a basenesse and servitude.
