as in criticism
an unfair criticism or false accusation meant to damage another's reputation
Let's keep the debate focused on the issues and try to avoid casting aspersions on one another. I don't mean to cast aspersions on his integrity, but I'm not sure I'd trust him with the money.
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Recent Examples of aspersion
The entire point of declaring some rock cool is to cast further aspersions on the actual popular rock bands at the time.
—
Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 21 July 2025
Any aspersions for the prevalence of fake Louis Vuitton should be cast on Canal Street in New York, not in France.
—Marcus Thompson Ii, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
Even as China’s coercive capabilities and threatening behavior have rightly focused U.S. attention on the risks to American interests, the absence of clear metrics for success leaves the door open for partisan aspersions of the Biden administration’s approach.
—Jessica Chen Weiss, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2024
The author casts unconfirmed aspersions on the agency.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 23 Dec. 2023
See All Example Sentences for aspersion
Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 21 July 2025
Any aspersions for the prevalence of fake Louis Vuitton should be cast on Canal Street in New York, not in France.
—Marcus Thompson Ii, The Athletic, 22 Jan. 2025
Even as China’s coercive capabilities and threatening behavior have rightly focused U.S. attention on the risks to American interests, the absence of clear metrics for success leaves the door open for partisan aspersions of the Biden administration’s approach.
—Jessica Chen Weiss, Foreign Affairs, 16 Sep. 2024
The author casts unconfirmed aspersions on the agency.
—Torie Bosch, STAT, 23 Dec. 2023
See All Example Sentences for aspersion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for aspersion
Noun
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His first collection, Death of a Naturalist, was published by Faber and Faber in 1966 and was followed by eleven other volumes of poetry, as well as collections of literary criticism, anthologies, translations, and verse plays.—
Nick Laird,
The New York Review of Books,
25 Apr. 2026
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With Minnesota viewing them as soft, the Nuggets hardly seem bothered by the criticism.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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For Roseman, the value of landing a top-15 player in the first round trumped the extra dart throws in the fourth round.—
Zach Berman,
New York Times,
27 Apr. 2026
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But a dart of a throw to home from center fielder Andy Pages cut down former Dodgers prospect Michael Busch to keep the Cubs scoreless.—
Maddie Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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As shown in The Athletic’s match dashboard below, City might have had more of the ball, but Arsenal created some excellent opportunities with an attack-minded approach at the Etihad.—
Mark Carey,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
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Both Hezbollah and Israel have have defended their attacks and claimed that the other has violated the ceasefire.—
Sarah Dean,
NBC news,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The names of places, roads, buildings and more, reflect the impact folks in Connecticut have made for hundreds of years.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
27 Apr. 2026
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After all, coaches want a sure thing when millions are being spent on revenue sharing and name, image and likeness compensation.—
Eric Olson,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Shapiro released a special 41-minute episode of his podcast detailing Fuentes’s career of calumnies against Black people, Indian Americans, Jews, and women—and called out Carlson’s refusal to confront the young white supremacist about any of it.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
4 Feb. 2026
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The Sermon on the ‘Mount episode also represented, amid the resulting furor on the right, a canny announcement that the collected calumnies of creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone are finally available on the Paramount Plus streaming service, after years licensed on Warner Bros.—
David Bloom,
Forbes.com,
28 July 2025
Noun
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The censure appears to be the first in recent memory at Judson ISD.—
Noah Alcala Bach,
San Antonio Express-News,
24 Apr. 2026
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Potential punishments included a reprimand or a censure, which serve as forms of public rebuke.—
Kevin Freking,
Sun Sentinel,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Find something else to illustrate your contempt, not this image.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
29 Apr. 2026
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Which is why Aunt Vidala’s struggle to conceal her contempt for Aunt Lydia has been difficult to understand.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Aspersion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/aspersion. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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