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
Relevance
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
The neighbor's negative response—bad-mouthing OP to others—reflects an entitlement mindset, Sprowl noted.
—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
The vulnerable Mayfair he’s sent to woo is new character Moira, who’s been getting on everybody’s nerves by bad-mouthing Lasher for second-degree murdering her sister Tessa.
—Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 5 Jan. 2025
Apparently, Sue has been putting all of her time not already occupied by bad-mouthing Kyle into digging under rocks and cliffs looking for idols.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 5 Dec. 2024
John Legend isn't about to let anyone bad-mouth the people in his hometown of Springfield, Ohio.
—Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 13 Sep. 2024
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
The neighbor's negative response—bad-mouthing OP to others—reflects an entitlement mindset, Sprowl noted.
—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
The vulnerable Mayfair he’s sent to woo is new character Moira, who’s been getting on everybody’s nerves by bad-mouthing Lasher for second-degree murdering her sister Tessa.
—Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 5 Jan. 2025
Apparently, Sue has been putting all of her time not already occupied by bad-mouthing Kyle into digging under rocks and cliffs looking for idols.
—Dalton Ross, EW.com, 5 Dec. 2024
John Legend isn't about to let anyone bad-mouth the people in his hometown of Springfield, Ohio.
—Mary Cunningham, CBS News, 13 Sep. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bad-mouth
Verb
-
Seven of those charged previously pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor and prosecutors moved to dismiss their felony counts.—
Quinlan Bentley,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Olguin dismissed the case in 2022 after finding Elden’s claims were time-barred without addressing the substance of his allegations.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Amen Thompson wasn’t going to be counted on as Houston’s primary ballhandler until Fred VanVleet’s injury, but the Rockets should be leaning on Thompson as a point guard going forward, especially to minimize Thompson’s lack of shooting.—
Law Murray,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Here’s a handsome Japanese cutting board that’s designed to minimize stress on your hand and lengthen the life of your chef’s knives.—
Kristi Kellogg,
Architectural Digest,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Some council members have criticized the proposal, citing a lack of communication and calling the move premature.—
Vanessa Swales,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
-
So far, the league’s response has been not to fix the issue but, instead, to levy fines against players and coaches who criticize refs.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Their patches of habitat and their water sources are diminishing; their feeding timeline has grown increasingly erratic, and more barricades are being built all the time, limiting their freedom of movement.—
Ganesh Marín,
The Dial,
7 Oct. 2025
-
And another sign the perception is of a Panthers team diminished.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Despite a disparaging 1-3 start to the year for Florida, SEC Network’s College GameDay equivalent, SEC Nation, set up camp in GainesvilleSaturday.—
Noah White,
Miami Herald,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Many actors have disparaged the move on social media, in comments on Deadline’s story, as well as through their own social media channels and comments to the press.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
That’s not to denigrate Punch, which is solidly built and well-meaning without sanctimony.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
30 Sep. 2025
-
They were recognized leaders of an artistic movement denigrated by Nazi leadership as Marxist-Jewish decadence.—
Christopher C. Gorham
September 29,
Literary Hub,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Advertisement Instead of being celebrated as trailblazers, these women are mocked by the press, underestimated by their colleagues, and belittled by society at large.—
Isadora Wandermurem,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Our foul, flatulent father-figure may exaggerate a bit when belittling his enemies (and friends, for that matter), but cloaked under his aura of filth — like an adult Pig-Pen’s toxic dust cloud — rests a core truth.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
24 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bad-mouth.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bad-mouth. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share