ż A harangue can be a noun that means a scolding or a long and
intense verbal attack. +DUDQJXH can also be used as a verb
meaning to deliver such a verbal attack, as in “His mother
constantly harangues him about his messy room.”Vilify (verb)
To attack someone’s reputation with strong or abusive criticism; to malign.z Vilify means to say terrible things about a person, whether such
statements are true or not. Consider this context sentence: “Although
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the scientist’s reputation was restored by other researchers who
FRQ¿UPHGKHUK\SRWKHVLV ́z 7KH ¿UVW WKUHH OHWWHUV LQvilify, vil, give us a spelling-meaning
connection with the word vile. When you vilify someone, you say
vile things about that person.z Synonyms and related words for vilify are numerous, including
EDFNELWH, malign, slander, slur, libel, defame, disparage, denigrate,
NQRFN GRZQ, put down, tear down, slam, pan, besmirch, smear,
and sully.Calumny (noun)
A false accusation maliciously intended to destroy someone’s reputation.z Calumny is a good word for the slanderous lies and false accusations
you might use to vilify someone. Consider, for example, this
context sentence: “Instead of basing his attacks on the president’s
actual policies, the candidate resorted to calumny to try to smear the
chief executive’s reputation.”z The verb form of calumny is calumniate, which means “to utter
maliciously false statements.”