backstab
backstab — noun
1. an act of secretly harming someone's reputation or interests while pretending to
an act of secretly harming someone's reputation or interests while pretending to be a friend, especially by saying negative things about them when they are not present.
Chiara felt deeply backstabbed when her work friend told the manager about her job search.
past participle: feel backstabbed — emotional response to betrayal
Samir called it the worst act of backstabbing he had experienced when his ally voted against his project.
act of backstabbing — gerund-noun construction
The student election became a series of backstabs as candidates worked against former allies.
Tendai warned his teammate that hiding the error would be backstabbing the whole team.
Bao realized the person who had backstabbed them was a friend they had defended many times.
- betrayal
broader and more formal; covers any breaking of trust, not only secret attacks
- treachery
more literary and dramatic; implies deep disloyalty, often in political or military settings
- stab in the back
more vivid and informal; an idiomatic phrase that means the same thing
用法筆記
Commonly used in workplace or social contexts where the betrayer maintains a friendly outward appearance. The word is almost always informal and carries strong emotional weight.