as in smeared
to make untrue and harmful statements about
a candidate who believes that it is possible to win an election without maligning anyone
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 maligned
Bats have long been maligned, associated with the likes of Dracula and other spooky fiends of the night.
—
Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
On Thursday, the president’s lawyers refiled a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times, alleging its reporters have knowingly and maliciously maligned his achievements.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Raiola gave credit to his receivers, to Johnson and to the offensive line, maligned after he was sacked 12 times in the previous two weeks.
—Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
Thibodeau has been unfairly maligned for his hard-driving approach to the game.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025
The Carolina Panthers’ much maligned 2023 draft class took another hit on Tuesday.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
Kennedy's rhetoric on autism has been embraced by some corners of the autism community and maligned in others.
—Zac Anderson, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2025
In other past social media posts, Kirk maligned hate speech as a weapon that liberals used to punish conservatives for their free speech.
—Ross O'Keefe, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
In addition to political persecution, returning Venezuelans would reenter a country teetering on collapse—maligned by hyperinflation, soaring unemployment, rampant crime, frequent power outages, water shortages and chronic scarcities of food and medicine.
—Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2025
Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 24 Oct. 2025
On Thursday, the president’s lawyers refiled a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times, alleging its reporters have knowingly and maliciously maligned his achievements.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Raiola gave credit to his receivers, to Johnson and to the offensive line, maligned after he was sacked 12 times in the previous two weeks.
—Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
Thibodeau has been unfairly maligned for his hard-driving approach to the game.
—Alex Kirschenbaum, MSNBC Newsweek, 1 Oct. 2025
The Carolina Panthers’ much maligned 2023 draft class took another hit on Tuesday.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 30 Sep. 2025
Kennedy's rhetoric on autism has been embraced by some corners of the autism community and maligned in others.
—Zac Anderson, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2025
In other past social media posts, Kirk maligned hate speech as a weapon that liberals used to punish conservatives for their free speech.
—Ross O'Keefe, The Washington Examiner, 18 Sep. 2025
In addition to political persecution, returning Venezuelans would reenter a country teetering on collapse—maligned by hyperinflation, soaring unemployment, rampant crime, frequent power outages, water shortages and chronic scarcities of food and medicine.
—Antonio Maria Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for maligned
Verb
-
Robert returns to his desk only to find that Invisigal had stolen him a donut as a gesture of good faith, which is now smeared all over his keyboard for the new janitor, Water Boy, to clean by vomiting H20 on the mess.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Look closely near the corners or edges of the frame for a blurry patch, smeared light, or a soft square that looks slightly out of focus — that’s where the watermark used to be.—
Jennifer Jolly,
USA Today,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
And so farewell, disgraced ex-State Police Sgt.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
15 Oct. 2025
-
Set to shoot next year, the series follows Weaving as Alan Armstrong — a brilliant but disgraced lawyer who’s forced to represent a dog on death row, setting him on an unexpected path toward redemption and self-discovery.—
Ben Croll,
Variety,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Or not even just vilified, but made fun of.—
Gerrick Kennedy,
Rolling Stone,
20 Oct. 2025
-
And completely vilified and hunted.—
Antonia Blyth,
Deadline,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
There was this huge peak between 2000 and about 2018 where there was a decentralized anti-Fascist movement that’s responsible for Richard Spencer going home, for Matthew Heimbach being humiliated.—
Fiction Non Fiction,
Literary Hub,
23 Oct. 2025
-
LaBella alleges that she was traumatized and humiliated by the experience.—
Gene Maddaus,
Variety,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Dearborn has often been slandered for simply coexisting peacefully, because the truth is, some people are uncomfortable, and frankly upset about seeing church steeples and mosque domes share the same skyline on roads.—
Niraj Warikoo,
Freep.com,
24 Sep. 2025
-
Moreno calls accusations ‘slander’ In a statement provided to The Bee, Moreno denied the accusations and said she was being slandered.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
9 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The Palestinian Authority, long discredited in the West Bank, has been absent in Gaza.—
Mohammed R. Mhawish,
New Yorker,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Colorado contends its law simply regulates licensed therapists by banning a practice that major medical groups have deemed harmful and discredited.—
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Nicklaus further argues that O’Brien defamed him by suggesting to company clients that the 85-year-old was exhibiting signs of dementia.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
23 Oct. 2025
-
Theodat alleges that Arroyo defamed her with false claims in the lawsuit, and that the Herald did so as well by reporting on the matter.—
Gayla Cawley,
Boston Herald,
12 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Maligned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/maligned. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share