infamous vs notorious :

infamous or notorious

“Infamous” means famous in a bad way. It is related to the word “infamy.” Humorists have for a couple of centuries jokingly used the word in a positive sense, but the effectiveness of the joke depends on the listener knowing that this is a misuse of the term. Because this is a very old joke indeed you should stick to using “infamous” only of people like Hitler and Billy the Kid. “” means the same thing as “infamous” and should also only be used in a negative sense.

Facebook Twitter Google +


  Do you make these 10 mistakes?
Definitions
  infamous
  • s  known widely and usually unfavorably;
    the infamous Benedict Arnold
  notorious
  • s  known widely and usually unfavorably;
    a notorious gangster
    the tenderloin district was notorious for vice
News & Articles
  infamous
  • E3: inFAMOUS Second Son First Impressions
    inFAMOUS: Second Son isn't an exact sequel to the previous games but more of another chapter set in the same world. The story takes place years after the first two games and its story is influenced by the events of these games. The biggest influence comes in the form of the Department of Unified Protection, which has been established to make sure that nothing else happens like what transpired in ...
    June 15, 2013 - Coming Soon
  • Yeiner Perez, Bart's Infamous Naked Acrobat, Maybe Spotted Performing on the Embarcadero (Video)
    People are claiming they've spotted the infamous Yeiner Perez (or at least someone with the same big hair) performing his circus stunts for tourists on the Embarcadero. SFist posted this video...
    June 14, 2013 - SF Weekly Blogs
  • Prodigy Launches Infamous Capsule Collection With PLNDR
    In addition to his new album with the Alchemist, called Albert Einstein, Mobb Deep frontman Prodigy is introducing his brand new clothing line, called Infamous.
    June 14, 2013 - Baller Status
  notorious
  • Photos: American gangsters
    James "Whitey" Bulger rose to the top of the notorious Winter Hill gang, prosecutors say, before he went into hiding for more than 16 years after a crooked FBI agent told him in December 1994 he was about to be indicted on federal racketeering charges.
    June 13, 2013 - CNN
  • 'Whitey' Bulger Was Never an FBI Snitch Because He's Irish, Says His Lawyer
    The trial for notorious Boston criminal mastermind James "Whitey" Bulger started Wednesday with his attorneys admitting in opening statements that the gangster made millions of dollars through gambling and drugs and paid off corrupt law enforcement officials, but they argued Bulger was never an informant for the FBI.
    June 12, 2013 - The Atlantic Wire via Yahoo! News
  • A Tour Of The Brain Of An Anti-Crop Biotech Activist
    The Genetic Literacy Project takes you into the mind of the world's most notorious anti-biotech scientist...and it's not a pretty picture.
    June 12, 2013 - Forbes