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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Spacey’s name was cited on a lengthy list of Epstein’s acquaintances and associates, which were released on Jan. 4, 2024 courtesy of unsealed court documents that were part of a 2015 defamation lawsuit against Epstein’s right-hand woman, Ghislaine Maxwell.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
15 July 2025 -
Scottish lawyer Fiona Harvey, who Martha was allegedly based on, filed a $170 million lawsuit against Netflix in June 2024, accusing the network of defamation and inaccuracy.—
Latoya Gayle,
People.com,
14 July 2025
Noun
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On July 18, the president sued the Wall Street Journal's publisher, Dow Jones & Company, as well as its owner, Rupert Murdoch, alleging the story amounted to libel and slander.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
19 July 2025
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Key Facts Trump filed the lawsuit in the Southern District of Florida alleging libel, assault and slander against Murdoch, Dow Jones and the two reporters behind the Journal’s story, according to multiple outlets.—
Siladitya Ray,
Forbes.com,
18 July 2025
Verb
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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
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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
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 30 Jul. 2025.
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