pile-on

American  

[pahyl-on, ‐-awn] / ˈpaɪlˌɒn, ‐ˌɔn /

noun

1. the action of followers who join a hostile group in harshly criticizing or judging a less dominant group or individual, sometimes gloating over that group’s or person's defeat or diminished standing (often used attributively): Social media encourages a kind of pile-on mentality that is very unforgiving of mistakes and flaws.

   Long after the merciless baiting ceased to be funny, her critics continued to join the pile-on.

   Social media encourages a kind of pile-on mentality that is very unforgiving of mistakes and flaws.

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Etymology

Origin of pile-on

Noun use of verb phrase pile on

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

pile-on

The pile-on proceeded to break comment section containment, spreading into blogs, magazines and network TV talk shows.

From Salon ● Feb. 16, 2026

The risk is a pile-on that would be the mirror image of Bitcoin ETFs’ role in last year’s Bitcoin rally, when the surge of inflows to the new funds helped drive the crypto higher.

From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 2026

Poor Matthew suffered a pile-on when it looked as if Johnson hadn’t gotten the votes.

From Slate ● Jan. 4, 2025

If it sounds like a pile-on of the tourists, it’s not the intention, because there were positives too.

From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2024

The pile-on continued and some said this could tank her chances of running for office in the future.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2024

Related Words

• exaggerate
• overestimate
• overplay
• overrate
• overreach
• overstate
• overuse
• overvalue