as in attack dog
one who makes harsh, personal attacks against opponents
a local hot-button issue that has turned some normally mild-mannered neighbors into letter-writing mudslingers
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mudslinger
Social media platforms were a critical battleground during the campaign, with political mudslingers waging cyberwar with few legal constraints after the government failed to act on calls for a new law to protect democracy in the internet age.
—
Washington Post, 12 Dec. 2019
In 2010, when the group launched ahead of Barack Obama’s reelection campaign, Brock had imposed a set of self-regulations on the staff that would cultivate an air of respectability for the mudslingers.
—Gabriel Debenedetti, Daily Intelligencer, 20 May 2018
What must be almost the last charge of this decimated brigade of mudslingers approaches again, carrying with them like a Kathy Griffin icon the utter imbecility of the Steele accusations.
—Conrad Black, National Review, 11 Oct. 2017
If that lady is a 101-year-old movie legend, any would-be mudslingers best take care, her attorney said this week.
—Christie D'zurilla, latimes.com, 2 Sep. 2017
He isn’t known as a dogface solider boy or mudslinger in South Miami.
—Alex Butler, miamiherald, 28 Apr. 2017
Washington Post, 12 Dec. 2019
In 2010, when the group launched ahead of Barack Obama’s reelection campaign, Brock had imposed a set of self-regulations on the staff that would cultivate an air of respectability for the mudslingers.
—Gabriel Debenedetti, Daily Intelligencer, 20 May 2018
What must be almost the last charge of this decimated brigade of mudslingers approaches again, carrying with them like a Kathy Griffin icon the utter imbecility of the Steele accusations.
—Conrad Black, National Review, 11 Oct. 2017
If that lady is a 101-year-old movie legend, any would-be mudslingers best take care, her attorney said this week.
—Christie D'zurilla, latimes.com, 2 Sep. 2017
He isn’t known as a dogface solider boy or mudslinger in South Miami.
—Alex Butler, miamiherald, 28 Apr. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mudslinger
Noun
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Vance often has served as an attack dog for the administration, including lashing out at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an Oval Office visit.—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
21 Jan. 2026
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Who is Brendan Carr? Carr is a long-serving member of the FCC who has become an increasingly visible attack dog for the Trump administration this year.—
Brian Stelter,
CNN Money,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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It was started in 1995 by libertarians Justin Raimondo, a prolific polemicist who died in 2019, and editor Eric Garris, with occasional pieces turning into daily updates in April 1998.—
John Seiler,
Oc Register,
7 Dec. 2025
Noun
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Twin Isle, from Shirley’s Trini Cuisine chef Janelle Romeo, makes customizable bowls, roti wraps, bake-and-shark and oxtail fries.—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
10 Feb. 2026
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Anyone who has seen a shark fin break the water and then disappear knows this is not reassuring.—
Josh Tyrangiel,
The Atlantic,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mudslinger.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mudslinger. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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