Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

poison the well

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.08 in modern English

Syllables: poi-son the well
IPA

21

Scrabble Score

13

Letters

2

Syllables

10

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To preemptively raise ad hominem arguments in order to discredit someone.

Intransitive verb

verb

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see poison, the, well.

Etymology

First used figuratively by Catholic philosopher and Doctor of the Church John Henry Newman in his work Apologia Pro Vita Sua (1864), evidently in reference to the wartime tactic of well poisoning.

Usage

Intransitive verb

Inflected Forms

poisons the well (present, singular) poisoning the well (participle, present) poisoned the well (participle, past) poisoned the well (past)

Synonyms

taint the well

Questions

What does poison the well mean?: To preemptively raise ad hominem arguments in order to discredit someone.
Where does poison the well come from?: First used figuratively by Catholic philosopher and Doctor of the Church John Henry Newman in his work Apologia Pro Vita Sua (1864), evidently in reference to the wartime tactic of well poisoning.

How to pronounce poison the well

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