backbite

American

[bak-bahyt] / ˈbækˌbaɪt /

verb (used with object)

backbit, backbitten, backbit, backbiting

to attack the character or reputation of (a person who is not present).

Synonyms:

defame, libel, slander, deprecate, disparage, belittle

verb (used without object)

backbit, backbitten, backbit, backbiting

to speak unfavorably or slanderously of a person who is not present.

backbite British

/ ˈbækˌbaɪt /

verb

to talk spitefully about (an absent person)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

backbiter

noun

Etymology

Origin of backbite

Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; see origin at back ¹, bite

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Characters backbite, bellyache, reluctantly pitch in and commit mundane acts of heroism in a largely believable manner, and there’s blessedly little inspirational speechmaking.

From New York Times • Sep. 11, 2022

Diana could spin one delicious backbite like that into a column.

From Time Magazine Archive

Use his men well, Davy; for they are arrant knaves and will backbite.

From The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by Shakespeare, William

Ah, I'm afraid you mean she doesn't backbite.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 15, No. 89, March, 1865 by Various

From these though descended our manners are mended, Though still we can grin and backbite!

From The Book of Humorous Verse by Wells, Carolyn

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023