as in disparagement
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as in dismissing
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
she promptly bad-mouthed that awful movie to everyone she knew
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bad-mouthing
Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Most of the people who were bad-mouthing Titanic had not seen so much as a minute of film.
—Stacy Lambe, PEOPLE, 22 Oct. 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
Verb
At one point, Brown stepped away from the set, and co-stars Antoni Porowski, Tan France and Jonathan van Ness began bad-mouthing him behind his back, while his mom heard the whole conversation, according to TMZ.
—Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 21 Jan. 2026
Most of the people who were bad-mouthing Titanic had not seen so much as a minute of film.
—Stacy Lambe, PEOPLE, 22 Oct. 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bad-mouthing
Noun
-
The contract contained a non-disparagement clause, and in law, the special thing about disparagement is that unlike defamation, the truth is not a defense against disparagement.—
Marlow Stern,
Variety,
28 Apr. 2026
-
And the Times Magazine suggested the idea of discovering a similar past disparagement clause to the one that plagued HBO might dissuade any network from tackling a future Jackson project.—
Steve Knopper,
Rolling Stone,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Browns entered the offseason looking for a replacement after dismissing Kevin Stefanski, and Schwartz quickly emerged as a leading candidate after overseeing one of the NFL's top defenses.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
3 June 2026
-
On May 20, an $850,000 settlement was reached in the case in exchange for dismissing the complaint, according to a news release by Terr’s organization FIRE, which represented Bushart.—
Drew Pittock,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Noun
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Both players have been regular targets for fan criticism over their attitude this term.—
Guillermo Rai,
New York Times,
29 May 2026
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But that market has faced growing criticism for its dependence on mass production and cultural appropriation — and a portion of travelers are responding by spending their money differently.—
Hanna Wickes,
Kansas City Star,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
As with minimizing soil disturbance, this, too, helps tremendously with controlling erosion, increasing the carbon content of soil and conserving moisture.—
Special to The Denver Post,
Denver Post,
29 May 2026
-
Ambush hunting enables energy conservation while minimizing the risks associated with pursuit; remaining motionless in water for hours also costs comparatively little.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
28 May 2026
Noun
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After defeating Chwalinska in straight sets, Andreeva took time at the end of her acceptance speech to speak Russian, seemingly in defiance of the vilification due to her ethnic heritage by the tennis governing bodies and opposing players.—
Jon Root OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
7 June 2026
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Takaichi’s Japan is now headed in the opposite direction, with Xi’s campaign of vilification a vital spur.—
Andy Browne,
semafor.com,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
In March, Warren led the Massachusetts delegation in a letter to the State Department criticizing the administration’s lack of preparation in terms of evacuating Americans and pressing for answers on its response.—
Justin Papp,
CNBC,
28 May 2026
-
The agreement was immediately challenged in Kenya’s High Court, with opponents criticizing it for unfavorable terms.—
Larry Madowo,
CNN Money,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
Apolline may embrace the social media aspects of her career but George’s belittlement rankles her.—
Peter Rainer,
Christian Science Monitor,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The swell on Saturday, which brought moderate 3-to 5-foot surf, was diminishing by the evening and into Sunday, said Sebastian Westerink, meteorologist for the National Weather Service.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
7 June 2026
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This put him in the unusual position of being both an embarrassment and a hugely valuable asset to the BBC, as well as the focus of frequent criticism from the UK’s right-leaning media, most of whom have a commercial interest in diminishing the BBC.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bad-mouthing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bad-mouthing. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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