rumour
Noun:
- A piece of information or a story that is passed from person to person but has not been verified as true; gossip. A rumour is often a mixture of truth and untruth, spreading informally by word of mouth or other means.
Verb:
- To circulate or report a rumour. To tell or spread information or stories that are unverified.
Noun:
- A rumour about layoffs at the company caused anxiety among the staff.
- I heard a strange rumour that the old library is haunted.
Verb:
- It was rumoured that the famous actor was moving to our town.
- People began to rumour that the product was unsafe.
"Rumour has it (that)...": A common phrase used to introduce information that is being circulated informally.
- Rumour has it that the manager is going to resign.
"To start/spread a rumour": To be the origin of or to help circulate unverified information.
- Someone started a malicious rumour to damage his reputation.
"To quash/squelch a rumour": To stop a rumour from spreading, often by providing official information.
- The company issued a statement to quash the false rumour.
Rumor: (noun/verb) The standard American English spelling of 'rumour'. The British English spelling is 'rumour'.
- The rumor spread quickly through the school.
Rumourmonger / Rumormonger: (noun) A person who habitually spreads rumours.
- He is known as the office rumourmonger.
Rumour mill: (noun, often hyphenated as 'rumour-mill') The process or source by which rumours are created and spread.
- The political rumour mill was working overtime before the election.
- Gossip: Casual or unconstrained conversation or reports about other people, typically involving details that are not confirmed as true.
- Hearsay: Information received from other people that one cannot adequately substantiate.
- Tattle: (noun) Gossip or idle talk.
- Whisper: (noun) A rumour or piece of gossip that is spread in a secret or private manner.
(Note: 'Rumour' is not commonly used in standard phrasal verb constructions. Its usage is typically as shown in the examples above.)
"Rumours are flying": Rumours are spreading very quickly and widely.
- With the sudden CEO departure, rumours are flying about the company's future.
"To be the subject of rumour": To be the person or thing that rumours are about.
- The reclusive author has long been the subject of wild rumours.
- gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
- tell or spread rumors
- It was rumored that the next president would be a woman