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personal attack

NOUN

character assassination

Synonyms

WEAK

ad hominem blackening dirty politics dirty pool dirty tricks hatchet job muckraking mudslinging name-calling slanderous attack smear smear campaign

NOUN

smear campaign

Synonyms

WEAK

character assassination defamation defamation of character dirty politics dirty pool dragging one's name through the mud injury of reputation malicious defamation mudslinging negative campaign negative campaigning slander whispering campaign

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Maria O’Donnell, a journalist who drew Milei’s ire after urging him to tone down his rhetoric, said the president often appears to treat criticism as a personal attack.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026

“The abovementioned concerns and beliefs are not a personal attack on Captain Khasaempanth or the numerous executives named in my investigation, nor am I an obstructionist or malcontent,” Morris wrote in his March 2023 email.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 18, 2024

“To summarize, this is an operation to harass me by land, sea and air to try and make me give up politics through a personal attack on my wife,” Sánchez wrote.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 24, 2024

Mr Dyson told court the article was "a personal attack on all that I have done and achieved in my lifetime and is highly distressing and hurtful".

From BBC • Dec. 1, 2023

Rush took any challenge, whether from a disease or from a colleague, as a personal attack to be confronted and conquered.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

personal attack

Example Sentences

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