: orally communicated
also
: generated from or reliant on oral publicity
word-of-mouth customers
a word-of-mouth business
: oral communication
especially
: oral often inadvertent publicity
Examples of word-of-mouth in a Sentence
Adjective
not having the money to run ads, the restaurant relies on word-of-mouth publicity
Recent Examples on the Web
Neil McRobert, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2025
The film built momentum through word-of-mouth, growing its audience for eight straight weeks, with repeat customers accounting for over 80% of total box office as viewers returned to experience different narrative branches.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
But friction is where stories begin, and people love telling stories about Costco—which relies on word of mouth rather than advertising.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for word-of-mouth
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Adjective
The Lamb is a rare and welcome word-of-mouth success from England’s neglected north.
—Neil McRobert, Vulture, 16 Oct. 2025
The film built momentum through word-of-mouth, growing its audience for eight straight weeks, with repeat customers accounting for over 80% of total box office as viewers returned to experience different narrative branches.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun phrase
There’s also plenty of word of mouth and just plain visibility due to its prominent upper-arm logo.
—Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 20 Oct. 2025
But friction is where stories begin, and people love telling stories about Costco—which relies on word of mouth rather than advertising.
—Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for word-of-mouth
Cite this Entry
“Word-of-mouth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/word-of-mouth. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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