as in libel
the use of personal attacks or insults in order to undermine an opponent
the campaign quickly degenerated into name-calling rather than an intelligent discussion of the issues
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of name-calling
Economic uncertainty is what won the day for Trump and the GOP this past week, not name-calling or hate speech.
—
Baltimore Sun Editorial Board, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
Policy proposals aside, there's been name-calling, vulgarity, and plain old meanness.
—Jon Lapook, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2024
Maximizers who call Trump a fascist are dismissed by the minimizers as either engaging in name-calling or forcing a facile parallel.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2024
What has happened to Black players has been a litany of name-calling and threats, to the point that some teams have had to increase security.
—Susan M. Shaw, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for name-calling 
Baltimore Sun Editorial Board, Baltimore Sun, 10 Nov. 2024
Policy proposals aside, there's been name-calling, vulgarity, and plain old meanness.
—Jon Lapook, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2024
Maximizers who call Trump a fascist are dismissed by the minimizers as either engaging in name-calling or forcing a facile parallel.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2024
What has happened to Black players has been a litany of name-calling and threats, to the point that some teams have had to increase security.
—Susan M. Shaw, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for name-calling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for name-calling
Noun
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His barrister, David Sherborne, who represented Johnny Depp in his libel suit against The Sun, was pictured arriving at the Rolls Building in the past hour.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
21 Jan. 2025
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What To Know Zachary Young, a U.S. Navy veteran, is suing CNN, accusing the network of defamation and libel.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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But as part of the censure, the board barred Morris from taking part in deliberations and votes regarding the Hagekhalil investigation.—
Ian James,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Dec. 2024
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Still, her presence does give Sorkin the opportunity to leap back and forth between the writing of the address and the aftermath, exploring the president’s struggle to regain his composure after a congressional censure in the process.—
Matthew Jackson,
Vulture,
23 Sep. 2024
Noun
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This bill defines providing gender affirming care to persons under 16 as child abuse.—
Trans Formations Project,
Them,
24 Jan. 2025
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Virginia Lujan of Tempe was taken into custody by the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office on felony child abuse charges related to her 13-year-old granddaughter’s death, PEOPLE has confirmed.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
24 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near name-calling
Cite this Entry
“Name-calling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/name-calling. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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