supercilious
haughtily superior
Roots
- -ous / -ious: full of or marked by a quality
- super- / sur-: above, over, or beyond
Super gives above; the old image is a raised eyebrow looking down.
His supercilious tone made the apology sound fake.
Supercilious is memorable because the superiority is almost physical: the eyebrow lifts, the person looks down, and contempt enters the face.