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ru·mor | \ ˈrü-mər 
\
\Definition of rumor
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : talk or opinion widely disseminated with no discernible source
2 : a statement or report current without known authority for its truth
3 archaic : talk or report of a notable person or event
4 : a soft low indistinct sound : murmur
rumor
verbrumored; rumoring
Definition of rumor (Entry 2 of 2)
: to tell or spread by rumor
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Examples of rumor in a Sentence
Noun
There are rumors that they are making a new film.
She accused him of starting rumors about her.
Ever since his sudden resignation, rumors have been flying.
I heard a rumor that they broke up.
“Did you hear that they broke up?” “That's just a rumor.”
The rumor turned out to be false.
You can't fire him solely based on rumor. Rumor has it that they broke up. Verb
for years people have been rumoring the CEO's imminent retirement
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Grimes first sparked pregnancy rumors on Instagram in January by posting a nude photo of herself with a fetus Photoshopped over her visible baby bump.
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Cydney Henderson, USA TODAY, "Elon Musk's musician girlfriend Grimes opens up about her struggles with pregnancy," 4 Feb. 2020 The couple has been dating since late last year, and initially sparked romance rumors in October when they were seen kissing at an acai bowl shop in West Hollywood.
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Rania Aniftos, Billboard, "Miley Cyrus Strips Down to Lingerie to Give Cody Simpson a Super Bowl 'Supercut'," 4 Feb. 2020 Amber Hunt: That began to change as more and more evidence surfaced to substantiate the rumors of long-term radioactive leaks.
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cincinnati.com, "Accused podcast, Season 3, Chapter 8: The nuclear wrap-up," 28 Jan. 2020 Reports surfaced about the potential dangers of the workout, along with rumors of its cultlike following.
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Tessa Love, Outside Online, "Greg Glassman’s Easy Health Care Fix: More CrossFit," 16 Jan. 2020 The Enquirer's Bobby Nightengale and John Fay addressed Lindor trade rumors last month on their podcast.
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Dave Clark, Cincinnati.com, "Reds have shown interest in Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager all offseason, per report," 9 Jan. 2020 Drummond, the subject of trade rumors, blocked Darius Garland’s 3-point attempt and added a tough contest against Collin Sexton on the final possession to allow the Pistons to complete a 2-4 road trip.
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Vince Ellis, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Pistons begin life without Blake Griffin, rally past Cleveland Cavaliers, 115-113," 8 Jan. 2020 January 2017: Hadid sparks engagement rumors when she's spotted wearing a ring on that finger.
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Christopher Rosa, Glamour, "Gigi Hadid and Zayn Malik’s Relationship: A Complete Timeline," 30 Dec. 2019 For years, religious conservatives in Afghanistan have spread rumors that shelters for women are, in fact, secret brothels.
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Jane Ferguson, The New Yorker, "Peace Talks, the Taliban, and Afghan Women’s Uncertain Future," 19 Dec. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Terms of the deal — which had been rumored for weeks — were not announced, though Recode’s Peter Kafka reports that Spotify intends to hire The Ringer’s 90 employees and keep its website up and running.
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BostonGlobe.com, "Case of Freedom Trail guides headed to the NLRB," 5 Feb. 2020 Masai Ujiri, the Toronto Raptors team president, has long been rumored to be a target for Dolan to fulfill the same role for the Knicks.
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New York Times, "Knicks President Steve Mills Is Leaving the Team," 4 Feb. 2020 Although other possible reasons for the firing have been rumored around Washington, on Tuesday, the VA still pointed to the two-line statement without elaborating.
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Abraham Mahshie, Washington Examiner, "Fired deputy secretary was not dismissed over handling of sexual misconduct case, VA says," 4 Feb. 2020 Brady has also been rumored to have purchased or looking to buy property in Las Vegas and Connecticut.
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Mark Daniels, USA TODAY, "Tom Brady says he and Patriots are evaluating their options ahead of NFL free agency," 4 Feb. 2020 Several companies yanked or postponed IPOs late last year, including Endeavor (who had already filed) and others like Postmates and Robinhood, who had been rumored (but not filed) to go public.
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Anne Sraders, Fortune, "The fall of WeWork was a jolt to venture capital—how that could change VC investing," 22 Jan. 2020 The casting had been rumored earlier, but this was the first time someone involved with the movie officially confirmed it.
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Tyler Aquilina, EW.com, "Leonardo DiCaprio confirms he and Robert De Niro will star in Martin Scorsese's next movie," 20 Jan. 2020 The 44-year-old Rhule had been rumored to be in the running for both the Panthers and Giants jobs.
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Matt Young, Houston Chronicle, "Matt Rhule leaving Baylor for Panthers job," 7 Jan. 2020 Soleimani had been rumored dead several times, including in a 2006 airplane crash that killed other military officials in northwestern Iran and following a 2012 bombing in Damascus that killed top aides of Assad.
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Time, "President Trump Ordered Strike That Killed Top Iran Gen. Qasem Soleimani, Pentagon Says," 3 Jan. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'rumor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for rumor
rumor
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of rumor
: information or a story that is passed from person to person but has not been proven to be true
See the full definition for rumor in the English Language Learners Dictionary
rumor
nounru·mor | \ ˈrü-mər \
\Kids Definition of rumor
(Entry 1 of 2)
: information or a story that is passed from one person to another but has not been proven to be true and has no known source
rumor
verbrumored; rumoring
Kids Definition of rumor (Entry 2 of 2)
: to spread information or a story that has not been proven to be true
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Comments on rumor
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Time Traveler for rumor
The first known use of rumor was in the 14th century
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