call names

Idioms  

1. Verbally abuse someone, use offensive epithets, as in The teacher told the children to stop calling names. This idiom was first recorded in the late 1600s but Shakespeare used a similar expression earlier in Richard III (1:3): “That thou hadst called me all these bitter names.”

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Example Sentences

“Everyone else you call names and mistreat and then falsely claim you are a victim…@pmddomingos.”

From The Verge • Mar. 5, 2021

"They weren't abusive and they didn't call names," the fourth alum recalled.

From Fox News • Sep. 14, 2020

“They call names, they deny, but they’re not willing to face up to what the real facts are,” Mr. Bolton said.

From Washington Times • Jun. 22, 2020

But, she said, “You’ll note that nowhere in the statement do we call names or label people as ‘Christian nationalists.’

From Salon • Aug. 10, 2019

As the boys behind me call names and the girls to each side sneer, I look straight ahead because those sheep are smiling at me.

From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals