as in defamation
the making of false statements that damage another's reputation
this smearing has got to stop, or the voters will conclude that there's absolutely no one worth voting for
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in coating
to rub an oily or sticky substance over
the toddler gleefully smeared her hair and face with maple syrup
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in libelling
to make untrue and harmful statements about
he is willing to smear his opponent if doing so would win the election
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smearing
Noun
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In a video missive put out earlier Tuesday, Sharpe attacked Buzbee’s credibility directly and promised to file a defamation lawsuit against the admittedly aggressive attorney and the OnlyFans posting Jane Doe.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
24 Apr. 2025 -
Hov not only sued her for defamation, but also her attorney Tony Buzbee.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
24 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Lipstadt became famous—and was later portrayed onscreen by Rachel Weisz—for winning a judgment in a British court against the Holocaust denier David Irving, who had sued her for libel.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
22 Apr. 2025
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In February 2022, U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff rejected Palin's claims in a ruling issued while a jury deliberated, saying Palin had failed to show that the Times had acted out of malice, something required in libel lawsuits involving public figures.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
22 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The categories are painting, drawing, mixed media, printmaking, sculpture, photography, digital art and video/animation.—
Anne Gelhaus,
The Mercury News,
20 Mar. 2025
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In the painting Untitled (Gram Yatra), Husain emphasizes the centrality of village and rural life in India as the basis for going forward as a new nation.—
Karen K. Ho for ARTnews,
Robb Report,
20 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Poor data quality can provide wrong models and alerts, discrediting predictive monitoring.—
Hrushikesh Deshmukh,
Forbes,
24 Feb. 2025
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Johnson released new guidelines for reporting gifts Wednesday after discrediting the investigation.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Smearing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smearing. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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