Meaning & use
rumor
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Meanings
nouncountable or uncountable
A story or claim passed from person to person without proof that it is true.
Grammar: Countable for one story (a rumor), uncountable in general (rumor has it).
Patterns
- a rumor that something
- rumor has it that
- a rumor about someone
There is a rumor that the school will close.
Rumor has it that they are getting married.
The company denied the rumor about layoffs.
verbtransitiveformal
To report or pass on a claim as something said but not proven.
Grammar: Almost always passive: it is rumored that, he is rumored to be.
Patterns
- be rumored to do something
- it is rumored that
The singer is rumored to be planning a farewell tour.
It was rumored that the bridge would be closed.
The hotel is rumored to be haunted.
Word forms
| plural | rumors |
|---|---|
| third person singular | rumors |
| past tense | rumored |
| past participle | rumored |
| -ing form | rumoring |
Common combinations
- spread a rumor
- Someone spread a rumor about the new teacher.
- rumor has it
- Rumor has it the café is changing owners.
- deny a rumor
- The coach denied the rumor that he was leaving.
- unfounded rumor
- The report was an unfounded rumor.
- rumor mill
- The office rumor mill started up after the meeting.
- dispel a rumor
- A short statement helped dispel the rumor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gossip
- Gossip is talk about people's private lives, while rumor is any unconfirmed claim and need not be personal.
- hearsay
- Hearsay stresses that information is secondhand and so unreliable, often in legal contexts.
- whisper
- Whisper hints at something passed quietly and secretly, usually a smaller, hush-hush rumor.
- buzz
- Buzz is informal and suggests excited talk, often positive, rather than a doubtful claim.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: rumor or humor? rumor or gossip?
rumor vs humor
Humor means funniness and starts with an h; rumor is an unconfirmed story.
rumor vs gossip
Gossip is chatter about other people, often personal, while a rumor can be about anything and is defined by being unconfirmed.
Practice
I heard a ___ that the train strike is off, but nothing has been announced yet.
Choose one answer.
A rumor is an unconfirmed story. Fact, report, and statement suggest confirmed or official information, which conflicts with nothing announced yet.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rumor”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.