impugn

verb

im·​pugn im-ˈpyün 

impugned; impugning; impugns

transitive verb

1

: to assail by words or arguments : oppose or attack as false or lacking integrity

impugned the defendant's character

2

obsolete

a

: assail

b

: resist

impugnable

im-ˈpyü-nə-bəl 

adjective

impugner

im-ˈpyü-nər 

noun

Did you know?

Impugn, pugnacious, pugilist: them’s fightin’ words, literally. All three words trace back to the Latin noun pugnus, meaning “fist.” Though they floated like butterflies down different paths into English from that shared source, each stings like a bee (so to speak) in its own way. The noun pugilist refers to a fighter or boxer, while the adjective pugnacious describes someone showing a readiness or desire to fight or argue. The verb impugn today has belligerent implications, albeit of the verbal jousting kind, but in its earliest known English uses in the 1300s, impugn could refer to a physical attack (as in, “the troops impugned the city”) as well as to assaults involving verbal contradiction or dispute. Over time, though, the sense of literal battling has become obsolete while the “assailing by words or arguments” sense has endured.

Examples of impugn in a Sentence

He impugned his rival's character.

Her motives have been scrutinized and impugned.

Recent Examples on the Web

Targets often accuse short sellers of impugning their reputation for financial gain. —Andrew Ross Sorkin, New York Times, 16 Jan. 2025

For example, opposition forces, led by Lee, have ruthlessly attacked the first lady, stirring mass protests and impugning her character. —Victor Cha, The Atlantic, 20 Dec. 2024

If Scarborough is just going to continue to channel the deep state’s refusal to accept the right of Trump to staff his administration by trying to impugn those picks, he’s learned nothing about why so many have such contempt for the legacy media. —Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 2 Dec. 2024

The positions were clear with every track: Drake was contending with the envy of his peers for his reign on top of the charts despite years of supporting them as collaborators and impugning Kendrick’s credibility as an arbiter of cultural purity and Black pride. —Shamira Ibrahim, refinery29.com, 9 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Anglo-French empugner, from Latin inpugnare, from in- + pugnare to fight — more at pungent

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

impugn

verb

im·​pugn im-ˈpyün 

: to attack as false or not to be trusted

impugn the honesty of an opponent