vilification

American  

[vil-uh-fi-kay-shuhn] / ˌvɪl ə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act of defaming or speaking ill of someone or something.

   Senior bishops are prepared to atone for the vilification their predecessors heaped on Darwin in the 1860s, when he put forward his theory of evolution.

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Etymology

Origin of vilification

First recorded in 1600–10; equivalent to vili(fy) ( def. ) + -fication ( def. )

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Explanation

If one politician speaks in a strongly insulting way about another politician, that's vilification. Vilification is saying something extremely derogatory about someone in speech or writing. When vilification is deliberate and false, it can be called libel (making a false written statement about someone) or slander (speaking that same false statement aloud). Vilification isn't always a lie, although it usually is—and sometimes vilification is used with the intention of inciting hatred of a person or group of people: "The website was shut down because of its vilification of immigrants."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

vilification

There followed a statement by U.S. bishops condemning what they called the vilification and arbitrary treatment of migrants.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 27, 2025

But Coomer’s lawyers insisted the Stupid Defense couldn’t excuse the vilification of Coomer or the impact on his reputation.

From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2025

What does not help, in any way, is the vilification of people who do not have children.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2024

Her co-star Brandon Sklenar this week also spoke out about what he saw as the vilification of Lively.

From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2024

The historical record makes it perfectly clear, to be sure, that Jefferson was orchestrating the campaign of vilification, which had its chief base of operations in Virginia and its headquarters at Monticello.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

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