scaremongering

American

[skair-mahng-ger-ing] / ˈskɛərˌmɑŋ gər ɪŋ /

noun

the practice or strategy of scaring or alarming people as a means of manipulating them; fearmongering.

adjective

scaring or alarming people as a means of manipulating them; fearmongering.

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.

Scaremongering that artificial intelligence will kill mankind has died down.

From The Wall Street Journal

Maddie believes speaking openly about baby loss can still be a "taboo" and that those who do could be considered to be "scaremongering".

From BBC

"But no-one I've met through social media talking about baby loss has felt like it's scaremongering - it's felt informative, because sometimes you could help someone else realise some signs," she said.

From BBC

Ms Marshall said: "It felt almost scaremongering to me. There is almost aggression behind what he was saying - offering a fixed price, quick deadlines, 14-day turnarounds, inflated numbers."

From BBC

Letters sent to homeowners in Sheffield threatening High Court legal action after a solicitor bought the freehold for their houses have been described by recipients as "scaremongering" and "aggressive".

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023