impugned

verb

past tense of impugn
as in criticized
formal to criticize (a person's character, intentions, etc.) by suggesting that someone is not honest and should not be trusted He impugned his rival's character. Her motives have been scrutinized and impugned.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of impugned The reputations of our decent and hard-working journalists were terribly impugned, and today they have been exonerated. — K.j. Yossman, Variety, 7 July 2026 But the Pentagon’s representatives seemed to feel impugned. — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2026 So the markets are the ultimate arbiter of over whether the Fed’s independence is being impugned. — NBC news, 18 Jan. 2026 The school board argued that Pickering’s statements were false and that the reputation of the district and its employees had been impugned. — Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impugned
  1. criticized
  2. blamed
  3. denounced
  4. condemned
  5. accused
  6. appealed
Verb
  • Chief Critic Democratic Party consultant and former President Barack Obama’s ex-campaign adviser David Axelrod criticized the White House’s decision to use the old plane as a decoy with journalists on board.
    — Siladitya Ray, Forbes.com, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The Saturday Night actress also opened up about how she’s been criticized over the years for her relationships.
    — Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of criticized
Verb
  • His bid to bring China into the WTO also came under fire from officials who blamed him for making too many concessions – some even accused him of selling out the country.
    — CNN Staff, CNN Money, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Craig has blamed Flanagan for a lack of oversight and accountability, allegations that Flanagan rejects.
    — Diana Paulsen, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of blamed
Verb
  • Wasserman Schultz and Moskowitz denounced the statement at the time.
    — Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026
  • In his address, Carrillo denounced the conditions at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center located in his district.
    — Sofia Williams, Sacbee.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of denounced
Verb
  • Krishnan rightly points out that actively suppressing language ought to be condemned, but that suppression and obsolescence are wholly different.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026
  • On Saturday, Oman condemned attacks on the vessels that were attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, saying in a statement that such attacks could affect its negotiations with Iran over the waterway’s management.
    — Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of condemned
Verb
  • State prosecutors have accused Mangione’s lawyers of trying to get that case thrown out on double jeopardy grounds under New York State law, which says a defendant can’t be tried twice for the same crime.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The office has already brought charges against four, including the mother of a 14-year-old boy accused of killing an elderly pedestrian while riding an e-motorcycle.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of accused
Verb
  • It was appealed by Lifton and the PCFB and Blakeman’s ability to cure was frozen due to the appeal.
    — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 29 May 2026
  • Louisiana appealed to our court and sought a stay pending appeal.
    — Aria Bendix, NBC news, 1 May 2026
Definition of appealed

Browse Nearby Words

impugn
impugned
impugning
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Impugned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impugned. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on impugned

Nglish: Translation of impugned for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of balmy

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All