Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Date: 1100-1200
Language: Late Latin
Origin: scandalum 'offense', from Greek skandalon

scandal

 noun
     
scan‧dal
1 [countable] an event in which someone, especially someone important, behaves in a bad way that shocks peopleCOLLOCATIONS COLLOCATIONS
cause a scandal be involved in a scandal be (at) the centre of a scandal big/major scandal financial/political scandal corruption/sex/drugs etc scandal a scandal breaks (=a scandal becomes known)
It caused quite a scandal when he left his wife.
The college has recently been involved in a drugs scandal.
He has been at the centre of a political scandal.
a major scandal involving the government
a sex scandal that ruined his reputation
They had already left the country when the scandal broke.
2 [uncountable] talk about dishonest or immoral things that famous or important people are believed to have done:
The magazine is full of gossip and scandal.
3

be a scandal

British English spoken to be very shocking or unacceptable:
The price of petrol these days is an absolute scandal!
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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