scaremonger

[skair-muhng-ger, -mong-]

noun

a person who creates or spreads alarming news.

Origin of scaremonger

First recorded in 1885–90; scare + monger

Also called fear·mon·ger [feer-muhng-ger, -mong-] /ˈfɪərˌmʌŋ gər, -ˌmɒŋ-/.

Related formsscare·mon·ger·ing, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for scaremongering

Contemporary Examples of scaremongering

Now you might say this sounds like a whole lot of scaremongering, of “what about the children” shouting.
We Should Celebrate Social Media's Slaying of Robin Thicke
Tauriq Moosa
July 4, 2014
Howard Kurtz on the scaremongering by television and local officials.
A Hurricane of Hype
Howard Kurtz
August 28, 2011
The article, by Jonathan Strong, is rife with scaremongering, anonymously sourced accusations.
Presidents Can Have Migraines
Dana Goldstein
July 20, 2011

British Dictionary definitions for scaremongering

scaremonger

noun

a person who delights in spreading rumours of disaster

Derived Formsscaremongering, noun

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

Word Origin and History for scaremongering

scaremonger

also scare-monger, 1888, from scare (n.) + monger (n.).