affront
an insult or open offense
Roots
Other words with the front root
- effrontery: shameless boldness or nerve
- front: the face or forward side
Affront keeps the face image: an insult thrown toward someone's face.
The careless joke felt like an affront after weeks of serious work.
Affront is not just disagreement. It has face-to-face disrespect inside it: something is said or done as if honor has been struck in public.