vilify

[vil-uh-fahy]

See more synonyms for vilify on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), vil·i·fied, vil·i·fy·ing.

to speak ill of; defame; slander.
Obsolete. to make vile.

Origin of vilify

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English word from Late Latin word vīlificāre. See vile, -fy

Related formsvil·i·fi·ca·tion, nounvil·i·fi·er, nounvil·i·fy·ing·ly, adverbun·vil·i·fied, adjective

Can be confusedvilify villainize

Synonyms for vilify

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1. depreciate, disparage, calumniate, malign, abuse, asperse, blacken.

Antonyms for vilify

1. commend.

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

Related Words for vilify

revile, decry, smear, denounce, defame, berate, malign, damn, denigrate, mistreat, assail, disparage, slander, blister, knock, cuss, curse, debase, jinx, slur

Examples from the Web for vilify

Contemporary Examples of vilify

But it remains a moral crime to vilify good cops who have made the city safe, saving thousands of lives.
Protesters Slimed This Good Samaritan Cop
Michael Daly
December 16, 2014
And there is the additional fear in these types of cases that the public will vilify the victim, not a celebrity wrongdoer.
Here’s What She’d Tell Bill Cosby Today
Dean Obeidallah
December 9, 2014
With few Yankees left to vilify, Venezuela continues its slow motion spin into disrepair.
Venezuela’s Audio Hoax Sees Chavez Speaking From the Grave
Mac Margolis
October 8, 2013
Rather than vilify Republicans for their defense of the wealthy, he returned again to trying to win the intellectual high ground.
Is This Thing On?
Daniel Stone
October 6, 2011
Once upon a pre-feminist time, it was more common to vilify the woman.
Bedding the Boss
Tracy Quan
October 5, 2009

Historical Examples of vilify

"Even that may be more pardonable than to vilify a good one," said Mary.
The Martins Of Cro' Martin, Vol. I (of II)
Charles James Lever
Oh, fling him into a crater; that will teach him to vilify his betters.
The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to prose. Volume I (of X) - Greece
Various
If you are his friend, why do you vilify and slander him behind his back?
The Mask
Arthur Hornblow
If they were not impartial, this man would never have dared to vilify them.
A Sketch of the Life of the late Henry Cooper
William Cooper
The vulgar, wherever he passed, were instigated to reproach and vilify him.
The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.I., Part E.
David Hume

British Dictionary definitions for vilify

vilify

verb -fies, -fying or -fied (tr)

to revile with abusive or defamatory language; malignhe has been vilified in the tabloid press
rare to make vile; debase; degrade

Derived Formsvilification (ˌvɪlɪfɪˈkeɪʃən), nounvilifier, noun

Word Origin for vilify

C15: from Late Latin vīlificāre, from Latin vīlis worthless + facere to make

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 vilify

mid-15c., "to lower in worth or value," from Late Latin vilificare "to make cheap or base," from Latin vilis "cheap, base" (see vile) + root of facere "to make" (see factitious). Meaning "to slander, speak evil of" is first recorded 1590s. Related: Vilified, vilifying.