Meaning & use
mudsling
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Meanings
verbintransitiveinformaldisapproving
To make unfair or damaging remarks about someone, especially in politics, in order to harm their reputation.
Grammar: No object; often followed by 'against' or 'at': They mudsling against their opponents.
Patterns
- mudsling against someone
- mudsling at someone
During the election, both candidates spent more time mudslinging than discussing policies.
She accused her rival of mudslinging against her family.
The newspaper criticized the party for mudslinging instead of debating real issues.
noununcountableinformaldisapproving
The act of making unfair or damaging remarks about someone, especially in politics.
Grammar: Used mainly in the form 'mudslinging'; not used with 'a' or in the plural.
Patterns
- political mudslinging
- a campaign of mudslinging
The debate turned into mudslinging within minutes.
Voters are tired of the mudslinging and want to hear about solutions.
The article described the election as full of mudslinging and personal attacks.
Word forms
| third person singular | mudsling |
|---|---|
| past tense | mudsling |
| past participle | mudsling |
| -ing form | mudslinging |
Common combinations
- mudsling against
- The candidate refused to mudsling against his opponent.
- political mudslinging
- The campaign was marked by political mudslinging.
- engage in mudslinging
- Both sides engaged in mudslinging during the debate.
- accuse someone of mudslinging
- The senator accused her rival of mudslinging.
Synonyms and how they differ
- smear
- Smear is more direct and can be a noun or verb; it often implies spreading false information, while mudsling is broader and usually involves personal attacks.
- slander
- Slander is a legal term for spoken false statements that damage reputation; mudsling is informal and not necessarily illegal.
- disparage
- Disparage means to speak of someone in a belittling way; it is more formal and less common in political contexts than mudsling.
Word family
- mudslinger noun
- A person who frequently makes unfair or damaging remarks about others, especially in politics.
- mudslinging noun
- The activity of making unfair or damaging remarks about someone.
Commonly confused: mudsling or mud-slinging?
mudsling vs mud-slinging
This is the same as 'mudslinging' but with a hyphen; both are acceptable, though the unhyphenated form is more common.
Practice
The politician was criticized for ______ against his opponent instead of talking about his plans.
Choose one answer.
The -ing form 'mudslinging' is needed after 'for' to show the activity. 'Mudsling' is the base verb and would be incorrect after 'for'; 'mudslinger' is a person; 'mudslinged' is not a real word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “mudsling”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.