scaremonger.

A person who spreads alarming claims or stories that foster public fear.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• accuse someone of being a scaremonger
• dismiss a scaremonger
• a political scaremonger

On the page

The mayor called the reporter a scaremonger rather than answering the evidence.

A scaremonger at the checkpoint spread rumors that every road was mined.

She checked the claim before deciding whether its author was a scaremonger.

Usage notes

Primary category: fear. Disapproving label; often implies irresponsible exaggeration, but does not prove conscious deception. Distinguish criticism of messaging from a rebuttal of its facts. Count noun. Count plural: scaremongers. Derived family (not additional inflections or records): scaremongering.