bad-mouth

verb

ˈbad-ˌmau̇th How to pronounce bad-mouth (audio)
Definition of bad-mouthnext
as in to dismiss
to express scornfully one's low opinion of she promptly bad-mouthed that awful movie to everyone she knew

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bad-mouth This is not some glossy revisionist history of a person’s life; the man had a beautiful soul who didn’t have it in him to bad-mouth a cockroach. — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 Sep. 2025 Ranting on LinkedIn and bad-mouthing your ex-employer or naming and shaming your last negative recruitment experience won’t help you either. — Rachel Wells, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025 This was a departure from Mourinho and Conte, who both moaned about investment, attacked the club culture, exited unceremoniously, and bad-mouthed them afterward. — Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2025 Leading up to the premiere of It Ends With Us last year, Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni reached an uneasy truce in which it was agreed that neither side would bad-mouth the other to the press. — Winston Cho, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for bad-mouth
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bad-mouth
  1. dismiss
  2. minimize
  3. criticize
  4. diminish
  5. disparage
  6. denigrate
  7. belittle
Verb
  • The stance has seen Newsom, who warns the passage of Prop 40 could see an exodus of the super rich from California, mocked and dismissed by fellow Democrats.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The complaint was ultimately dismissed, and Iowa's Republican leaders celebrated the ruling.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of dismiss
Verb
  • Department leaders are evaluating how to best deploy resources for different emergencies and minimize disruptions.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Research actually shows that having depression can more than double your risk for dementia, so don’t minimize it, Tucker says.
    — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of minimize
Verb
  • Opponents have criticized using a countywide sales tax to help finance improvements at Marshall.
    — Haley Parsley October 12, Sacbee.com, 12 Oct. 2026
  • China criticized Lai’s speech, accusing him of disregarding facts and misleading the public.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of criticize
Verb
  • The National Weather Service said rainfall was diminishing in the area but that rapid river rises and flooding remained possible.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The culture surrounding the use of alcohol has diminished in younger generations, at least anecdotally, Haddock said.
    — Ben Wheeler, Kansas City Star, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of diminish
Verb
  • Each worker signed a document seen by The Associated Press agreeing not to disparage Caddell and not to disclose the individual payments.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Each worker signed a document seen by the Associated Press agreeing to not disparage Caddell and to not disclose the individual payments.
    — Colleen Barry, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of disparage
Verb
  • This is not to denigrate what pathbreaking American technology companies can accomplish on their own—their innovation is the envy of the world, and rightly so.
    — DAVID S. COHEN, Foreign Affairs, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Today, some of Nashville’s biggest stars have aligned themselves with (or shrewdly eschewed criticism of) a political movement that has denigrated countless demographic groups, including Punjabi immigrants.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of denigrate
Verb
  • Accounts like Bradford’s tended to minimize or belittle the Native Americans who already lived in the New World.
    — M. R. O’Connor, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • And yet, these same commentators who proudly belittle Clark and Cunningham continue to claim that Black lesbian women are the ones the sports media relentlessly targets.
    — Bobby Burack OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of belittle

Browse Nearby Words

badly
bad-mouth
bad-mouthed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bad-mouth.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bad-mouth. Accessed 18 Oct. 2026.

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