Burton's Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006
Vilify — Vil i*fy, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Vilified}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Vilifying}.] [L. vilis vile + fly; cf. L. vilificare to esteem of little value.] 1. To make vile; to debase; to degrade; to disgrace. [R.] [1913 Webster] When themselves they vilified To… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
vilify — mid 15c., to lower in worth or value, from L.L. vilificare to make cheap or base, from L. vilis cheap, base (see VILE (Cf. vile)) + root of facere to make (see FACTITIOUS (Cf. factitious)). Meaning to slander, speak evil of is first recorded… … Etymology dictionary
vilify — *malign, traduce, asperse, calumniate, defame, slander, libel Analogous words: *abuse, outrage, mistreat, misuse: assail, *attack: revile, vituperate, berate (see SCOLD) Antonyms: eulogize … New Dictionary of Synonyms
vilify — [v] criticize very harshly abuse, asperse, assail, attack, bad mouth*, berate, blister, call down*, caluminate, censure, curse, cuss*, damn, debase, decry, defame, denigrate, denounce, dig*, disparage, dress down*, dump on*, give a black eye*,… … New thesaurus
vilify — ► VERB (vilifies, vilified) ▪ speak or write about in an abusively disparaging manner. DERIVATIVES vilification noun. ORIGIN Latin vilificare, from vilis cheap, base … English terms dictionary
vilify — [vil′ə fī΄] vt. vilified, vilifying [LL(Ec) vilificare: see VILE & FY] to use abusive or slanderous language about or of; calumniate; revile; defame vilification n. vilifier n … English World dictionary
vilify — UK [ˈvɪlɪfaɪ] / US [ˈvɪlɪˌfaɪ] verb [transitive] Word forms vilify : present tense I/you/we/they vilify he/she/it vilifies present participle vilifying past tense vilified past participle vilified formal to criticize someone very strongly,… … English dictionary
vilify — vil|i|fy [ˈvılıfaı] v past tense and past participle vilified present participle vilifying third person singular vilifies [T] [Date: 1400 1500; : Late Latin; Origin: vilificare to make less valuable , from Latin vilis ( VILE) + facere to make ]… … Dictionary of contemporary English
vilify — /ˈvɪləfaɪ / (say viluhfuy) verb (t) (vilified, vilifying) 1. to speak evil of; defame; traduce: *Existing standards say radio and television broadcasts must not incite hatred or vilify a group on the grounds of race and other factors. –west… …
vilify — transitive verb ( fied; fying) Etymology: Middle English vilifien, from Late Latin vilificare, from Latin vilis cheap, vile Date: 15th century 1. to lower in estimation or importance 2. to utter slanderous and abusive statements against ; defame… … New Collegiate Dictionary
