muckrake

muckrake
muckrake muck"rake`, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {-raked}; p. pr. & vb. n. {-raking}.] To seek for, expose, or charge, especially habitually, corruption, real or alleged, on the part of public men and corporations.

Note: On April 14, 1906, President Roosevelt delivered a speech on ``The Man with the Muck Rake,'' in which he deprecated sweeping and unjust charges of corruption against public men and corporations. The phrase was taken up by the press, and the verb to {muckrake}, in the above sense, and the noun muckraker, to designate one so engaged, were speedily coined and obtained wide currency. The original allusion was to a character in Bunyan's ``Pilgrim's Progress'' so intent on raking up muck that he could not see a celestial crown held above him. [Webster 1913 Suppl.]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • muckrake — index disapprove (condemn), expose Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • muckrake — ☆ muckrake [muk′rāk΄] vi. muckraked, muckraking [inspired by the allusion by ROOSEVELT2 Theodore in a speech (1906) to the man with the muck rake in Bunyan s Pilgrim s Progress ] to search for and publicize, as in newspapers, any real or alleged… …   English World dictionary

  • muckrake — v.intr. search out and reveal scandal, esp. among famous people. Derivatives: muckraker n. muckraking n. * * * verb explore and expose misconduct and scandals concerning public figures This reporter was well known for his muckraking •… …   Useful english dictionary

  • muckrake — intransitive verb Etymology: obsolete muckrake, noun, rake for dung Date: 1910 to search out and publicly expose real or apparent misconduct of a prominent individual or business • muckraker noun …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • muckrake — muck•rake [[t]ˈmʌkˌreɪk[/t]] v. i. raked, rak•ing to search for and expose corruption, scandal, or the like, esp. in politics • Etymology: amer.; popularized by T. Roosevelt in 1906, in a speech alluding to the Man with the Muckrake in Bunyan s… …   From formal English to slang

  • muckrake — muckraker, n. /muk rayk /, v.i., muckraked, muckraking. to search for and expose real or alleged corruption, scandal, or the like, esp. in politics. [1675 85; obs. muck rake a rake for use on muck or dung. See MUCK, RAKE1] * * * …   Universalium

  • muckrake — verb to search for and expose corruption or scandal especially as done by a journalist …   Wiktionary

  • muckrake — v. reveal corruption, expose scandal …   English contemporary dictionary

  • muckrake — gossip, tell bad stories    If you talk about your opponent, try to avoid muckraking …   English idioms

  • muckrake — muck·rake …   English syllables

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