Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Affront

Affront ({not transcribed}) , transitive verb

[Old French afronter, French affronter, to confront, Late Latin affrontare to strike against, from Latin ad + frons forehead, front. See Front.]

1.
To front; to face in position; to meet or encounter face to face. [Obsolete]
All the sea-coasts do affront the Levant. — Holland
That he, as 't were by accident, may here Affront Ophelia. — Shakespeare
2.
To face in defiance; to confront; as, to affront death; hence, to meet in hostile encounter. [Archaic]
3.
To offend by some manifestation of disrespect; to insult to the face by demeanor or language; to treat with marked incivility.
How can any one imagine that the fathers would have dared to affront the wife of Aurelius? — Addison

Affront , noun

[Compare French affront, from affronter.]

1.
An encounter either friendly or hostile. [Obsolete]
I walked about, admired of all, and dreaded On hostile ground, none daring my affront. — Milton
2.
Contemptuous or rude treatment which excites or justifies resentment; marked disrespect; a purposed indignity; insult.
Offering an affront to our understanding. — Addison
3.
An offense to one's self-respect; shame. — Arbuthnot
Captious persons construe every innocent freedom into an affront. When people are in a state of animosity, they seek opportunities of offering each other insults. Intoxication or violent passion impels men to the commission of outrages. — Crabb