discredit

1 of 2

verb

dis·​cred·​it (ˌ)dis-ˈkre-dət How to pronounce discredit (audio)
discredited; discrediting; discredits

transitive verb

1
: to refuse to accept as true or accurate : disbelieve
discredit a rumor
2
: to cause disbelief in the accuracy or authority of
trying to discredit the claims of a rival
a discredited theory
3
: to deprive of good repute : disgrace
personal attacks meant to discredit his opponent

discredit

2 of 2

noun

1
: loss of credit (see credit entry 1 sense 3) or reputation
I knew stories to the discredit of EnglandW. B. Yeats
2
: lack or loss of belief or confidence : doubt
contradictions cast discredit on his testimony

Examples of discredit in a Sentence

Verb The prosecution discredited the witness by showing that she had lied in the past. Many of his theories have been thoroughly discredited. an attempt to discredit the governor Noun to his everlasting discredit, the coach was found to have placed bets against his own team
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Veteran human rights activist Oleg Orlov was sentenced Tuesday by a Moscow court to two and a half years in prison after he was found guilty of discrediting Russian’s armed forces in a trial that has been condemned by international observers as politically motivated. Reuters, NBC News, 27 Feb. 2024 Shawn Holley, the legal representative for Combs, issued a statement to Variety discrediting Jones’ allegations. Shelby Stewart, Essence, 27 Feb. 2024 Medical experts have discredited the procedure; defense lawyers call it rape. Carol Rosenberg, New York Times, 23 Feb. 2024 López Obrador frequently tries to discredit journalists who write critically about him, and Thursday’s news conference was no different. Mary Beth Sheridan, Washington Post, 23 Feb. 2024 Russia has consistently denied the claims of Rodchenkov, who is also the former head of Moscow’s anti-doping laboratory, and continually tried to discredit him. Molly Stazicker, CNN, 7 Feb. 2024 According to Albarracin, misinformation merely states something inaccurate, while a conspiracy theory seeks to discredit information that could disprove the theory, and, therefore, becomes more difficult to correct. USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 In 2016, Russian leader Vladimir Putin launched a broad campaign to defeat the presidential bid of Hillary Clinton and discredit the electoral process. Loren Thompson, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024 White House officials on Friday called the special counsel’s report into President Biden’s handling of classified material politically motivated, escalating their attempts to discredit a document that characterized the president as elderly and forgetful. Katie Glueck, New York Times, 9 Feb. 2024
Noun
Torn up over her first real lesbian love, McCullers confessed her feelings to Reeves, who, to his great discredit, slapped her across the face. Maggie Doherty, The New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2024 And that's not a discredit to Ben-Adir's performance, which is the shining light of this film. The Arizona Republic, 12 Feb. 2024 The committee said that Santos’ conduct warrants public condemnation, is beneath the dignity of the office, and has brought severe discredit upon the House. Kevin Freking, Fortune, 16 Nov. 2023 The officers, both cops since November 2017, face allegations of numerous rule violations, ranging from bringing discredit to the department and engaging in an unjustified verbal or physical altercation, to incompetency or inefficiency during the performance of their duties. Jeremy Gorner, chicagotribune.com, 5 Aug. 2021 Two weeks after the riot, the left-leaning Campaign for Accountability made a similar request for probes to determine if several House members may have incited a riot or brought discredit to Congress, among other potential violations of federal law and the rules of the House of Representatives. Ronald J. Hansen, The Arizona Republic, 11 Mar. 2021 Judge Sophia Hall ruled the Chicago Police Board made a sound decision in dismissing Officer Ricardo Viramontes last year for several Chicago Police Department rule violations, including making false statements, bringing discredit to the department and failing to promote its goals. Jeremy Gorner, chicagotribune.com, 10 Dec. 2020 Alex Wolinski faces dismissal for eight different police department rule violations — ranging from bringing discredit to the department and failing to promote its efforts to disrespecting a person and incompetency — according to city records filed last week to the Chicago Police Board. Jeremy Gorner, chicagotribune.com, 10 Nov. 2021 The regrettable attack on Nat (King) Cole in Birmingham by a band of hoodlums redounds to the everlasting discredit of those who foster race prejudice. al, 10 Apr. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'discredit.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Verb

1548, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1551, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of discredit was in 1548

Dictionary Entries Near discredit

Cite this Entry

“Discredit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/discredit. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

discredit

1 of 2 verb
dis·​cred·​it (ˈ)dis-ˈkred-ət How to pronounce discredit (audio)
1
: to refuse to accept as true or correct : disbelieve
discredit a rumor
2
: to cause to seem dishonest or untrue
discredit a witness
3
: to destroy the good reputation of : disgrace entry 1
involvement in the scandal discredited them
discreditable
-ə-bəl
adjective
discreditably
-blē
adverb

discredit

2 of 2 noun
1
: loss of good name or respect
brought discredit on their family
2
: lack or loss of belief or confidence
bring a story into discredit

More from Merriam-Webster on discredit

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