backbite

Characters backbite, bellyache, reluctantly pitch in and commit mundane acts of heroism in a largely believable manner, and there’s blessedly little inspirational speechmaking.

From New York Times ● Sep. 11, 2022

Diana could spin one delicious backbite like that into a column.

From Time Magazine Archive

Amund the blind slays Lyting; Valgard the guileful comes back to Iceland; his evil counsel to Mord; Mord begins to backbite and slander Hauskuld and Njal's sons to one another.

From The story of Burnt Njal From the Icelandic of the Njals Saga by Dasent, George Webbe

I am sorry to be obliged to backbite, but really and truly we don’t like Mrs. De Lancey Smythe.

From The Automobile Girls at Palm Beach Proving Their Mettle Under Southern Skies by Crane, Laura Dent

It is true that Pygmalion was an artist, and these are proverbially difficult husbands: after an hour's work an artist will "sneer, backbite and speak daggers."

From The Intelligence of Woman by George, Walter Lionel

Here's an unthankful spiteful wretch! the good gentleman vouchsafed to make him his companion, because my husband put him into a few rags, and now see how the unrude rascal backbites him!

From Every Man out of His Humour by Jonson, Ben

One who backbites; a secret calumniator or detractor.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages) by Webster, Noah

It was only such as had reason to dread the secret communication between closet and housetop that feared her tongue; if she spoke loud, she never spoke false, or backbit in the dark.

From Malcolm by MacDonald, George

He was the hero of London society, which adored and backbit him alternately, and he was precisely the man whom the boy Brummell would worship.

From The Wits and Beaux of Society Volume 2 by Wharton, Philip

I overheard the aide-de-camp say; "he is a backbiting sneak, and I tell you again he's backbitten nobody more than he has you!"

From The Cavalier by Cable, George Washington

I came here to try and do you a good turn, not to hear John Huish backbitten.

From A Double Knot by Fenn, George Manville

I have no friend at Rome; I have laboured in England, to be misrepresented, backbitten and scorned.

From Outspoken Essays by Inge, William Ralph

Now we can't help being backbitten or talked about, but we can help doing it to others: the way, child, is to keep to ourselves and to see no one.

From Daisy Burns (Volume 2) by Kavanagh, Julia

No worse than they are backbitten, sir; for they have     marvellous foul linen.

From The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by Shakespeare, William

A man masters his emotions, remains calm under pressure, refuses to engage in gossip or backbiting and accepts his imperfections while continually striving to become the best version of himself.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026

That kind of provocative behavior will lead to years, even a lifetime, of one-upmanship, backbiting and behind-the-scenes maneuvers.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2025

Mark and Dahlia discuss this news, and also how lower court judges are calling out SCOTUS’ unreasoned, incoherent opinions and how some of the Justices are trying to control, alt, delete all the backbiting.

From Slate ● Sep. 6, 2025

And yet within weeks there was backbiting and infighting.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2024

And while Ophie knew that the cousins couldn’t truly hate her—she’d barely exchanged two words with them before they’d declared war—it didn’t make the constant backbiting or tiny pinches any more bearable.

From "Ophie's Ghosts" by Justina Ireland