1
as in attacked
to criticize harshly and usually publicly
the mayor had hardly been in office for a month before she was being excoriated for problems of very long standing
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Recent Examples of excoriated
In cities across the country, judges have excoriated both Immigration and Customs Enforcement and CBP, saying their officers used excessive force.
—
Lisa Song, ProPublica, 7 May 2026
The complicated, two-month saga to return Romero León was laid bare during a court hearing in downtown Los Angeles on April 23, during which a judge excoriated the government for not complying with his order to immediately return the 59-year-old and threatening to issue contempt sanctions.
—Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Kiffin was excoriated by fans and media for abandoning his team, but neither Chambliss nor his family begrudge the coach for leaving.
—Bomani Jones, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
Longtime colleagues excoriated one another in internal town meetings.
—Steven F. Wilson, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026
Past presidents have met with popes and taken their criticisms on the chin, so to speak, but never has a president excoriated a pope in a public manner.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 20 Apr. 2026
In recommending Comey's firing, the Justice Department leadership excoriated Comey for his handling of the investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server during her time as secretary of State.
—Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026
But he was also excoriated when his worst predictions failed to come true.
—The Conversation, 16 Mar. 2026
During a fiery congressional hearing last month, Democrats excoriated Bondi over haphazard redactions in the Epstein files that exposed intimate details about victims and included nude photographs.
—Arkansas Online, 5 Mar. 2026
Lisa Song, ProPublica, 7 May 2026
The complicated, two-month saga to return Romero León was laid bare during a court hearing in downtown Los Angeles on April 23, during which a judge excoriated the government for not complying with his order to immediately return the 59-year-old and threatening to issue contempt sanctions.
—Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Kiffin was excoriated by fans and media for abandoning his team, but neither Chambliss nor his family begrudge the coach for leaving.
—Bomani Jones, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
Longtime colleagues excoriated one another in internal town meetings.
—Steven F. Wilson, The Atlantic, 24 Apr. 2026
Past presidents have met with popes and taken their criticisms on the chin, so to speak, but never has a president excoriated a pope in a public manner.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 20 Apr. 2026
In recommending Comey's firing, the Justice Department leadership excoriated Comey for his handling of the investigation into Clinton's use of a private email server during her time as secretary of State.
—Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 2 Apr. 2026
But he was also excoriated when his worst predictions failed to come true.
—The Conversation, 16 Mar. 2026
During a fiery congressional hearing last month, Democrats excoriated Bondi over haphazard redactions in the Epstein files that exposed intimate details about victims and included nude photographs.
—Arkansas Online, 5 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excoriated
Verb
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Moments after the landscaper was attacked, officers got a call about a car in the middle of the street nearby.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
19 May 2026
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Denise attacked Djena again, beating her until Mohamed and their eldest son, Ahmed, pulled her off.—
Yudhijit Bhattacharjee,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
Verb
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Some highbrow writers had a right to be irritated by the concept of chick lit, though that wasn’t the fault of chick lit authors themselves.—
Hillary Busis,
Vanity Fair,
4 May 2026
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His last-minute, mixmaster approach to closing out the transit negotiations irritated several participants, but the end result was a fiscally responsible and transformative restructuring of mass transit in northern Illinois.—
David Greising,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Pratt slammed the city’s permitting problems.—
Samantha Masunaga,
Los Angeles Times,
17 May 2026
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Beua Leroux slammed home a volley in the 18th minute and Reid Roberts scored his first MLS goal in the 81st for San Jose.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 May 2026
Verb
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Most of them were spent on the third defensive pairing, and then the 22-year-old was scratched for Tyson Hinds late in the year as Quenneville favored the size of Hinds, who spent most of his season in the American Hockey League.—
Eric Stephens,
New York Times,
13 May 2026
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Replace scratched non-stick pans with cast iron, stainless steel or ceramic cookware.—
Ryan Brennan
May 11,
Miami Herald,
11 May 2026
Verb
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Katie Porter scolded, Tom Steyer channeled Bernie.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
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The victim said he was singled out for laughing, scolded, and told to continue reading before being ordered into the hallway.—
Peter D'Oench,
CBS News,
5 May 2026
Verb
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Other candidates have criticized her and expressed their support for LGBTQ+ students — Rendon perhaps most pointedly.—
Jemma Stephenson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 May 2026
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Owens, who has frequently criticized Hunter Biden and his family over his business dealings, drug addiction, and the controversy surrounding his laptop, previewed a wide-ranging discussion touching on addiction, politics, faith, and Washington’s political culture.—
Adisa Hargett-Robinson,
The Washington Examiner,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Excoriated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excoriated. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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