badmouth
/ˈbæd.maʊθ/verb
badmouth is spelled B-A-D-M-O-U-T-H: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 88,353rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, badmouth means “To criticize or malign, especially unfairly or spitefully” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in badmouth?
| Letters | 8: B-A-D-M-O-U-T-H |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 9 million words; the 88,353rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is badmouth?
Badmouth appears about once in every 9 million words in written English, the 88,353rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce badmouth?
- /ˈbæd.maʊθ/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Words people confuse with badmouth
Also written: bad-mouth (one word or two).
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of badmouth
- badmouths present, singular, he/she/it
- badmouthing participle, present
- badmouthed participle, past
- bad-mouth
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does badmouth mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
informalTo criticize or malign, especially unfairly or spitefully.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Badmouth in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to criticize or malign, especially unfairly or spitefully:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | dénigrer, déprécier, débiner |
| German | schlechtreden, schlechtmachen |
| Portuguese | falar mal |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does badmouth come from?
Calque of a Mande term, perhaps Vai [Term?] or Mandinka [Term?], which entered English via Gullah [Term?]. Compare Japanese 悪口(わるぐち) (waruguchi, “badmouthing”), which is a compound of 悪(わる) (waru, “bad, wicked”) and 口(くち) (kuchi, “mouth”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).