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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Her mother divorced her abusive father when Kaley was 3 years old and raised three children mainly as a single mom, Lanier said during jury selection.—
CNN.com Wire Service,
Mercury News,
11 Feb. 2026
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Her mother divorced her abusive father when Kaley was 3 years old and raised three children mainly as a single mom, Lanier said during jury selection.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The bravura production and costume design are respectively by Suzie Davies and Jacqueline Durran, both correctly tipping the outrageous into the tacky.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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Laxness was the heir not only to the language and setting of the sagas but to their humanity, their outrageous understatement and charm.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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The discontent was more widespread, more vociferous and more insulting this time.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Trump recently published an insulting social media post about Massie's wife, Carolyn Grace Moffa, that was reposted on X by Gallrein.—
Lucas Aulbach,
Louisville Courier Journal,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Weiner pled guilty to transferring obscene material to a minor in 2017 and spent 15 months in federal prison for the crime.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
5 Feb. 2026
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Texas Tech’s student section directed an obscene chant at Kansas’ Darryn Peterson as the freshman guard prepared to shoot a free throw late in the first half of the Jayhawks’ 64-61 victory over the Red Raiders on Monday night at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But, in private, Koren could be aggressive and vituperative—a competitive colleague who sought to destroy the reputations and careers of those who crossed him.—
Ben Taub,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Bal and Chi-Fou-Mi Productions, while almost certainly proceeding without Israeli institutional support, given the vituperative reactions his recent films have provoked — and, by his own admission, have been designed to provoke.—
Ben Croll,
Variety,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Scurrilous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scurrilous. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
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