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poison-pen
[ poi-zuhn-pen ]
adjective
- composed or sent maliciously, as a letter, usually anonymously and for the purpose of damaging another's reputation or happiness:
The newspaper received a poison-pen letter alleging that the mayor was misusing city funds.
- characterized by or given to the sending of poison-pen letters:
a poison-pen campaign; a poison-pen writer.
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Word History and Origins
Origin of poison-pen1
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Example Sentences
But between that one devastating tweet and this poison pen, perhaps the bodyguard was on to something.
The reader encounters "little poison-pen Gobby," a naughty boy who keeps on writing bare-faced lies.
The poison-pen puzzle, as it came to be known in the department, first bobbed up some six months before Allison tackled it.
These letters were certainly of the variety she had heard classed as poison pen.
Did you know anything about the poison-pen letters in Madison?
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