as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language
a scurrilous satire on the scandal that enveloped Washington
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Recent Examples of scurrilous
Players known for sometimes scurrilous behavior were scared off by that lifetime ban.
—
John Nogowski, Hartford Courant, 14 May 2025
The good people of Lancaster County were innocent of the charges thrown at them by raving Southerners and scurrilous Democrats.
—Matthew Karp, Harpers Magazine, 29 Apr. 2025
One upshot was Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which to this day insulates social media from legal liability for the content — however incendiary or scurrilous — that users post.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2025
Facts won’t deter Republicans on this point, however, for the same reason that Trump and his running mate, J. D. Vance, keep repeating their scurrilous lies about Haitian immigrants eating the pets of Ohio: white anxiety about a diversifying country has become one of the Party’s greatest assets.
—Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for scurrilous
John Nogowski, Hartford Courant, 14 May 2025
The good people of Lancaster County were innocent of the charges thrown at them by raving Southerners and scurrilous Democrats.
—Matthew Karp, Harpers Magazine, 29 Apr. 2025
One upshot was Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which to this day insulates social media from legal liability for the content — however incendiary or scurrilous — that users post.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2025
Facts won’t deter Republicans on this point, however, for the same reason that Trump and his running mate, J. D. Vance, keep repeating their scurrilous lies about Haitian immigrants eating the pets of Ohio: white anxiety about a diversifying country has become one of the Party’s greatest assets.
—Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for scurrilous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scurrilous
Adjective
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On The Rookie, Jenna Dewan shared screentime with her real-life fiancé, Steve Kazee, who played her frightening, abusive husband, Jason Wyler.—
Tanya Melendez,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Jan. 2026
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The story follows a young woman, a lifelong swimmer and Olympic hopeful, who accepts a college swimming scholarship in Texas in order to escape an abusive father and an alcoholic, suicidal mother.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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De Laurentiis took all the chaos in stride and was the expert judge for the cooking portion of the outrageous lineup of competitions.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
9 Jan. 2026
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The lawsuit also alleges WSU was liable for claims of outrageous conduct and other forms of negligence.—
Kevin Fixler,
Idaho Statesman,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Many researchers cite those exact words as insulting or wrong when asked about their own terminations.—
STAT Staff,
STAT,
29 Dec. 2025
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With two toddlers and a 10-hour workday for her husband, the advice was more insulting than helpful.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
7 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Indonesia, with the world’s biggest Muslim population, has strict rules that ban the sharing online of content deemed obscene.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
10 Jan. 2026
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Sylvie's storylines are ridiculous, her wardrobe obscene, her audacity unparalleled.—
Sam Reed,
Glamour,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Juxtaposed with these vituperative remarks are, naturally, shots of Trump seemingly falling asleep while on camera.—
Jordan Hoffman,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Dec. 2025
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From his pulpit, Wicks rains down selectively vituperative fire and brimstone, with an eye toward provoking walkouts from unsuspecting visitors—say, a gay couple or a single mom.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
11 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Scurrilous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scurrilous. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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