: orally communicated
also
: generated from or reliant on oral publicity
word-of-mouth customers
a word-of-mouth business
: oral communication
especially
: oral often inadvertent publicity
Examples of word-of-mouth in a Sentence
Adjective
not having the money to run ads, the restaurant relies on word-of-mouth publicity
Recent Examples on the Web
Pete Hammond, Deadline, 12 Dec. 2025
No longer seen as just a niche, prestige title, Clair Obscur rose to prominence thanks to strong word-of-mouth and its inclusion on the Xbox Game Pass Service, which allowed regular gamers and critics alike to try the game out without committing to a full purchase.
—James Perkins Mastromarino, NPR, 12 Dec. 2025
Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2025
Even though there’s no big P&A on Knives Out 3, there’s great word of mouth from both critics and audiences with 95% and 96%, respectively, on Rotten Tomatoes.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 1 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for word-of-mouth
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Adjective
The film has become the biggest box office success for a live-action film in Japan’s history, earning more than $112 million, a word-of-mouth sensation in the country.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 12 Dec. 2025
No longer seen as just a niche, prestige title, Clair Obscur rose to prominence thanks to strong word-of-mouth and its inclusion on the Xbox Game Pass Service, which allowed regular gamers and critics alike to try the game out without committing to a full purchase.
—James Perkins Mastromarino, NPR, 12 Dec. 2025
Noun phrase
The fervor is a testament to lovers of the romance genre and author Rachel Reid's Game Changer novels, which served as inspiration, as well as the massive word of mouth on social media.
—Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Dec. 2025
Even though there’s no big P&A on Knives Out 3, there’s great word of mouth from both critics and audiences with 95% and 96%, respectively, on Rotten Tomatoes.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 1 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for word-of-mouth
Cite this Entry
“Word-of-mouth.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/word-of-mouth. Accessed 17 Dec. 2025.
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