| Word | Meaning | Synonyms |
| Excoriate | 1. To denounce or berate severely; flay verbally: He was excoriated for his mistakes. 2. To strip off or remove the skin from: Her palms were excoriated by the hard labor of shoveling. | condemn, chasten, correct, castigate, doom, scorch, berate, reprobate, chastise, decry, chafe, objurgate get at, rile, nettle, fret, excoriate, decry fray, condemn, gall, rag, nark, chafe, get to, rub, gravel, take to task, upbraid |
| Castigate | 1. To criticize or reprimand severely. 2. Punish in order to correct | Admonish, flay, criticize, tongue-lash, bawl out, chasten, chastise, objurgate, reprimand, tick off |
| Revile | To assail with contemptuous or opprobrious language; address or speak of abusively. | Chide, assail, rake over the coals, lambaste, fulminate, vilify, rail, vituperate, revile, rail off, inveigh, rail in |
| Derogate | 1. To detract, as from authority, estimation, etc. (usually fol. by from). 2. To stray in character or conduct; degenerate (usually fol. by from). 3. To disparage or belittle. | Insult, disparage, belittle, denigrate, besmirch, calumniate, smear, asperse |
| Inveigh | To protest strongly or attack vehemently with words; rail (usually fol. by against): to inveigh against isolationism. | Have at, rip into, scorch, reproach |
| Impugn | 1. To challenge as false (another’s statements, motives, etc.); cast doubt upon. | Traduce gainsay (to speak or act against; oppose), come down on, accuse, point the finger at |
| Traduce | Speak unfavorably about | Malign, drag through the mud, bad mouth |
| Stigmatize | 1. To set some mark of disgrace or infamy upon: The crime of the father stigmatized the whole family. 2. To mark with a stigma or brand. 3. To produce stigmata, marks, spots, or the like, on. | Mark, disgrace, defame |
| Asperse | 1. To attack with false, malicious, and damaging charges or insinuations; slander. 2. To sprinkle; bespatter (1. to soil by spattering; splash with water, dirt, etc/ 2. to slander or libel: a reputation bespattered by malicious gossip.) | defame, slander, smirch, calumniate, smear, sully, besmirch, maculate, taint, smear, smutch, calumniate, tarnish, denigrate, defile, stain, daub, defame, corrupt, belittle, derogate |
| Calumniate | to make false and malicious statements about; slander. | Blacken, backbite, blaspheme, libel, defame, slander, smirch, calumniate, smear, sully, besmirch, maculate, taint, smear, smutch, calumniate, tarnish, denigrate, defile, stain, daub, defame, corrupt, belittle, derogate |
| Disparage | 1. To speak of or treat slightingly; depreciate; belittle: Do not disparage good manners. 2. To bring reproach or discredit upon; lower the estimation of: Your behavior will disparage the whole family. | Run down, slam, belittle, denigrate, derogate, pour scorn on, laugh at |
| Malign | 1. To speak harmful untruths about; speak evil of; slander; defame: to malign an honorable man. 2. evil in effect; pernicious; baleful; injurious: The gloomy house had a malign influence upon her usually good mood. (Adjective meaning) | evil, malefic, malevolent, malign, vicious, drag through the mud, traduce, malign, badmouth |
| Vituperate | To use or address with harsh or abusive language; revile. | Fulminate, vilify, rail, train, vituperate, revile |
| Vilify | To speak ill of; defame; slander. | Traduce, berate, bad mouth, berate, speak ill of, to pieces |
