discredit

American  

[dis-kred-it] / dɪsˈkrɛd ɪt /

verb (used with object)

1. to injure the credit or reputation of; defame.

   an effort to discredit honest politicians.

   Synonyms:

   undermine, tarnish, disgrace, disparage

2. to show to be undeserving of trust or belief; destroy confidence in.

   Later research discredited earlier theories.

3. to give no credence to; disbelieve.

   There was good reason to discredit the witness.

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noun

1. loss or lack of belief or confidence; disbelief; distrust.

   His theories met with general discredit.

2. loss or lack of repute or esteem; disrepute.

3. something that damages a good reputation.

   This behavior will be a discredit to your good name.

discredit British  

/ dɪsˈkrɛdɪt /

verb

1. to damage the reputation of

2. to cause to be disbelieved or distrusted

3. to reject as untrue or of questionable accuracy

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noun

1. a person, thing, or state of affairs that causes disgrace

2. damage to a reputation

3. lack of belief or confidence

Other Word Forms

• undiscredited
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of discredit

First recorded in 1550–60; dis- ¹ + credit

Explanation

Discredit means to cause mistrust or cast the accuracy of something into doubt. If you say that schooling is important to you, but you never study, your actions discredit you and your words. You discredit what someone says when you choose not to believe it. You can discredit the rumors going around about your boyfriend if you are sure of his love. On a more personal level, you discredit people when you cast their authority or reputation into doubt. If you're running a tough race for class president, your opponent may try to discredit you by talking about your failures or even making up lies about you. But this would be to the discredit of your opponent — his or her own reputation would suffer for this bad behavior.

Example Sentences

Mr. German, who left the bureau in 2004 and authored the 2019 book “Disrupt, Discredit, and Divide: How the New FBI Damages Democracy,” said the actual problem is likely far worse than the public knows.

From Washington Times • May 19, 2022

Now available in your podcast player: the audiobook edition of Danny M. Lavery’s latest book, Something That May Shock and Discredit You.

From Slate • Sep. 15, 2020

Now available in your podcast player: The audiobook edition of Danny M. Lavery’s latest book, Something That May Shock and Discredit You.

From Slate • Sep. 14, 2020

“Something That May Shock and Discredit You” goes further; Lavery has called it “memoir-adjacent.”

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 12, 2020

But why should we linger Afar from the grouse, To help the obstructives Discredit the House?

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 105, September 9, 1893 by Various

Related Words

• defame
• degrade
• destroy
• disgrace
• disparage
• disprove
• ruin
• slander
• smear
• vilify