Synonyms for smear
verb
To spread
cover, coat, apply; see paint 2, spread 4.
To slander
defame, vilify, libel; see insult, slander.
*To defeat
beat, conquer, trounce; see defeat 2, 3.
To dirty
soil, spot, sully; see dirty.
See smear in Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus II
verb
To spread with a greasy, sticky, or dirty substance:
bedaub, besmear, dab1, daub, plaster, smirch, smudge. See put onTo contaminate the reputation of:
befoul, besmear, besmirch, bespatter, blacken, cloud, denigrate, dirty, smudge, smut, soil, spatter, stain, sully, taint, tarnish. Idioms: give a black eye to, sling (or throw) mud on. See attack, clean- (Slang)
To render totally ineffective by decisive defeat:
annihilate, crush, drub, overpower, overwhelm, smash, steamroller, thrash, trounce, vanquish. (Informal) massacre, wallop. (Slang) clobber, cream, shellac. See win
noun
A discolored mark made by smearing:
blot, blotch, daub, smirch, smudge, smutch, splotch, stain. See marksAn attempt to destroy someone's reputation:
mudslinging, smear campaign. See praise
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