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whataboutery

British  
/ ˌwɑːtəˈbaʊtərɪ /

noun

  1. (of two communities in conflict) the practice of repeatedly blaming the other side and referring to events from the past

"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

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

Pointing to the issue of former Welsh Reform leader Nathan Gill being jailed for accepting Kremlin bribes, he added: "It's not about whataboutery, I think it's about proportionality."

From BBC Mar. 20, 2026

There are myriad reasons for that, before we get to the futile whataboutery that tends to clog social media on subjects like this.

From New York Times Apr. 24, 2020

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