aspersion
Definitions
An attack on someone's reputation or character; a damaging or insinuating remark (usually plural, in 'cast aspersions').
诽谤，中伤；含沙射影的恶语（多用复数，见 cast aspersions）。
Root Breakdown
Root-deriveda- (from ad-, upon) + spers (sprinkle) + -ion (act) = a sprinkling upon. It once named a literal sprinkling of water; the figurative sense is harmful words 'sprinkled' onto a person's good name, like flicking specks of mud. Today it lives almost only in cast aspersions on someone.
Root pers still carries 4 more wordsWhy It Means This
Aspersion made a long journey from church to courtroom. In Latin it was a literal aspersio, the sprinkling of holy water. English kept that ritual sense for centuries, then the picture turned figurative: instead of water, you sprinkle slander — tiny drops of accusation landing on someone's name. That metaphor is why it almost always appears as cast aspersions: you 'throw' the drops at a reputation.
Usage Guide
Almost always plural and in the fixed phrase cast aspersions on (someone/something). Rarely used in any other construction in modern English. Quite formal/literary in tone.
Example Sentences
- 1.
He angrily denied the aspersions cast on his honesty.
- 2.
I'm not casting aspersions on her motives — I'm just asking.
- 3.
The article cast aspersions on the company's safety record.
Easily Confused
aspersion vs accusation — An accusation is a direct, often specific charge ('you stole the money'). An aspersion is indirect and insinuating, a slur dropped on reputation without proof. You make an accusation; you cast aspersions.