as in criticism
an unfair criticism or false accusation meant to damage another's reputation
Let's keep the debate focused on the issues and try to avoid casting aspersions on one another. I don't mean to cast aspersions on his integrity, but I'm not sure I'd trust him with the money.
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Recent Examples of aspersion
Any aspersions for the prevalence of fake Louis Vuitton should be cast on Canal Street in New York, not in France.
—
Marcus Thompson Ii, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
Even as China’s coercive capabilities and threatening behavior have rightly focused U.S. attention on the risks to American interests, the absence of clear metrics for success leaves the door open for partisan aspersions of the Biden administration’s approach.
—Jessica Chen Weiss, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2024
The author casts unconfirmed aspersions on the agency.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 23 Dec. 2023
This potential smoking gun could be a destabilizing and demoralizing blow for many members of the Indigenous community, who in the past 12 months also have seen aspersions cast on the heritage of high-profile figures including Sacheen Littlefeather and independent film producer Heather Rae.
—Rebecca Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for aspersion
Marcus Thompson Ii, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
Even as China’s coercive capabilities and threatening behavior have rightly focused U.S. attention on the risks to American interests, the absence of clear metrics for success leaves the door open for partisan aspersions of the Biden administration’s approach.
—Jessica Chen Weiss, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2024
The author casts unconfirmed aspersions on the agency.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 23 Dec. 2023
This potential smoking gun could be a destabilizing and demoralizing blow for many members of the Indigenous community, who in the past 12 months also have seen aspersions cast on the heritage of high-profile figures including Sacheen Littlefeather and independent film producer Heather Rae.
—Rebecca Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for aspersion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for aspersion
Noun
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The Chinese retailer, known for its range of cheap ultra-fast-fashion clothing and criticisms of its labor and environmental practices, is nestled on the sixth floor of a more than century-old building in Paris, a city famous for high-end fashion and a recent green push.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
7 Nov. 2025
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Part of the reason why there are so few of these conversations about podcasting is a general lack of criticism for narrative audio.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Inside, figurines appear to shoot darts and a newspaper on the wall commemorates the sinking of the Titanic.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
8 Nov. 2025
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The trousers included a belt wrapped around the hips, with knee tucks and vertical front darts to complete the design.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Good's defenders – including city and state leaders – are calling what happened an unjustified attack; federal authorities say the agent was acting in self-defense.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
9 Jan. 2026
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In Kyiv, a CNN reporter said that the attack began around midnight, starting with multiple drone strikes on residential buildings.—
Kosta Gak,
CNN Money,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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HotHands is the most recognizable name in disposable warmers for a reason.—
Ashlea Halpern,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 Jan. 2026
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This year’s list of candidates previously lacked huge names like last year’s headliners, Mike Vrabel and Ben Johnson.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The Sermon on the ‘Mount episode also represented, amid the resulting furor on the right, a canny announcement that the collected calumnies of creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are finally available on the Paramount Plus streaming service, after years licensed on Warner Bros.—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
28 July 2025
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That’s when his ugly-American calumny turned to blather.—
Armond White,
National Review,
28 May 2025
Noun
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The City Council also asked for more training and improved policy and procedures on handling similar situations and Councilmember Hon Lien walked back the censure process that began earlier this week.—
Luis Melecio-Zambrano,
Mercury News,
25 Oct. 2025
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In doing so, the palace must weigh distancing itself from Andrew with ensuring the blowback from any further censure does not do even more damage to an institution that requires public buy-in.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
21 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Every day, Trump exhibits his contempt for laws enacted by Congress — and for the Constitution itself.—
Steve Chapman,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Jan. 2026
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Crosland also represented Troconis on contempt charges and successfully had those offenses dropped last June.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
7 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Aspersion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/aspersion. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
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