vilification

IPA/ˌvɪlɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/
KK[vˌɪləfəkˈeʃən]IPA/ˌvɪlɪfɪˈkeɪʃn/

vilification — noun

1. the act of speaking or writing extremely harsh, insulting things about a person

1.nounC1
Definition

the act of speaking or writing extremely harsh, insulting things about a person or group in order to make other people hate them or reject them publicly

Example

The vilification of teachers in the local press hurt the morale of the entire school.

vilification + of + [group]

Elena became the target of systematic vilification after she spoke out against the company's policies.

target of systematic vilification

Common collocations
  • vilification of [person/group]
  • target of vilification
  • systematic vilification
  • vicious vilification
  • personal vilification
  • public vilification
  • political vilification
  • campaign of vilification
  • subject someone to vilification
  • face vilification
Synonyms
  • defamation

    more specifically legal; refers to damaging someone's reputation through false statements, while vilification can include true statements made with malicious intent

  • slander

    narrower; refers specifically to spoken defamation, whereas vilification can be spoken or written

  • character assassination

    more dramatic and informal; emphasises the personal, deliberate destruction of someone's good name over time

Antonyms
  • praise

    expressing warm approval or admiration, the opposite of attacking someone's reputation

  • acclaim

    strong public approval or praise; the positive counterpart to public vilification

Grammar Patterns

vilification + of + [person/group]

Usage Note

Typically uncountable; the countable use (e.g. 'a vilification') is rare. Often appears with premodifying adjectives such as 'systematic', 'vicious', 'political', or 'personal'.

Common Mistakes

The article was a vilification of the mayor.
The article was a piece of vilification directed at the mayor.
As a non-count noun, vilification is not preceded by 'a' directly; use a piece of or rephrase.
He vilificationed his opponent.
He subjected his opponent to vilification.
Vilification is a noun; the verb form is 'vilify.'

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All five words describe harm done to someone's reputation, but they differ in scope and formality. 'Defamation' is the broadest legal term — it covers any false statement that damages reputation, whether spoken or written. 'Slander' and 'libel' are subcategories of defamation: slander for spoken statements, libel for written or published ones. 'Vilification' is more general and less legal — it includes spreading harsh criticisms that may or may not be false, with the clear intent of making others despise the target. 'Character assassination' is the most vivid and informal term, describing a sustained, deliberate campaign to destroy someone's reputation over time. For example, a politician who spreads false rumours about an opponent commits slander (if spoken) or libel (if printed); but the overall hostile effort to ruin the opponent's standing is better described as character assassination, while the public act of calling them evil and untrustworthy is vilification.

vilification ↗defamation ↗slander ↗libel ↗character assassination ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • campaign of vilification
  • subject to vilification
  • target of vilification

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Vilification traces back to the Latin adjective vīlis ('cheap, base, worthless') combined with the suffix -ficāre ('to make, to do'), forming the Late Latin verb vīlificāre ('to make cheap or worthless'). This passed into Old French as vilifier and then into Middle English as vilify. The noun vilification emerged in the 16th century, originally meaning 'the act of degrading or debasing,' and later shifted toward its modern sense of attacking someone's reputation through harsh speech or writing.

First known use

1630

1630, in the meaning defined at sense 1