guilt by association
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The attribution of guilt to individuals because of the people or organizations with which they associate, rather than because of any crime that they have committed.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Words nearby guilt by association
guillemot, Guillén, guilloche, guillotine, guilt, guilt by association, guiltless, guilt trip, guilty, guilty pleasure, guimpe
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
How to use guilt by association in a sentence
But that cannot happen when private-sector workers experience guilt-by-association with unpopular public-sector union actions.
Indeed, this form of shaming, blacklisting, and guilt-by-association is, itself, a form of defamation.