badmouth

Meanings

Verb

speak unfavorably about
- "She badmouths her husband everywhere"
To criticize or malign, especially unfairly or spitefully.

Origin / Etymology

Calque of a Mande term, perhaps Vai [Term?] or Mandinka [Term?], which entered English via Gullah [Term?]. Compare Japanese 悪口(わるぐち) (waruguchi, “badmouthing”), which is a compound of 悪(わる) (waru, “bad, wicked”) and 口(くち) (kuchi, “mouth”).

Synonyms

drag through the mud, malign, traduce

Scrabble Score: 16

badmouth is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
badmouth is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
badmouth is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 18

badmouth is a valid Words With Friends word