INDEX:
1. to say what you think is bad about someone or something
2. to strongly criticize someone or something
3. to be criticized
4. to criticize someone or something unfairly
5. something you say or write in order to criticize
6. intended to criticize someone or something
7. someone who criticizes
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ PRAISE
↑ DEFEND (3)
to angrily tell someone that they should not have done something : ↑ TELL SB OFF
see also
↑ ACCUSE
↑ BLAME
↑ COMPLAIN
↑ DISAPPROVE
↑ JUDGE
↑ OFFEND
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1. to say what you think is bad about someone or something
▷ criticize also criticise British /ˈkrɪtɪsaɪz, ˈkrɪtəsaɪz/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
▪ Stop criticizing my driving!
▪ People are always criticizing the Royal family, but I think they do a good job.
▪ Jackson declined to criticize his opponent, choosing instead to focus on his own message.
▪ It’s easy to criticize, but managing a football team can be an extremely difficult job.
criticize somebody for doing something
▪ The United Nations was criticized for failing to react sooner to the crisis.
criticize somebody/something as
▪ The President criticized the proposal as expensive and impractical.
▷ be critical /biː ˈkrɪtɪk ə l/ [verb phrase]
to strongly criticize a plan, system, or way of doing something, especially when you give detailed reasons why you think it is wrong :
▪ Don’t be so critical - we’re doing our best.
be critical of
▪ Miller was critical of the way the company was managed.
be highly critical
very critical
▪ Environmental groups were highly critical of the government’s new transportation policy.
▷ be a critic of somebody/something /biː ə ˈkrɪtɪk əv somebody/something/
if someone is a critic of the government, a person in authority etc, they regularly and publicly criticize them :
▪ She is one of the most well-known critics of the American private school system.
be an outspoken critic of somebody/something
not afraid to critize strongly and publicly
▪ He is regarded as one of Congress’s most outspoken critics of television violence.
be somebody’s greatest/biggest etc critic
criticize them more than anyone else does
▪ Mr Levy has established a reputation as the committee’s biggest, most vehement critic.
2. to strongly criticize someone or something
▷ attack /əˈtæk/ [transitive verb]
to strongly and publicly criticize a person, plan, or belief that you completely disagree with :
▪ Several actors have attacked proposals to cut the theatre’s budget.
attack somebody for (doing) something
▪ Union leaders attacked management for eliminating employee health benefits.
▷ slam /slæm/ [transitive verb]
to criticize someone or something very strongly in a public statement -- used especially in newspapers :
▪ Sullivan never misses a chance to slam the tobacco industry.
slam somebody for doing something
▪ Police slammed drivers for ignoring safety warnings.
▷ pan /pæn/ [transitive verb usually in passive]
to strongly criticize something such as a film, play, or a performance by writing about it in a newspaper, talking about it on television etc :
▪ The movie was panned by all the critics.
▷ tear something to shreds /ˌteəʳ something tə ˈʃredz/ [verb phrase]
to find a lot of faults in someone’s ideas or arguments and criticize them very severely :
▪ After the prosecutor had presented his case, the defence lawyer tore his arguments to shreds.
▷ pillory /ˈpɪləri/ [transitive verb usually in passive]
if someone is pilloried, they are criticized very strongly and publicly by a lot of people :
▪ Harper was pilloried in the press after his team’s sixth consecutive defeat.
▪ Middleton suffered the ultimate humiliation of being pilloried by his colleagues in front of the television cameras.
▷ do a hatchet job on /duː ə ˈhætʃə̇t dʒɒb ɒnǁ-dʒɑːb-/ [verb phrase] informal
to criticize every part of someone’s character or work :
▪ Field did a complete hatchet job on his former colleague at a cabinet meeting last week.
▷ lay into /ˈleɪ ɪntə/ [transitive verb] informal
to criticize someone very strongly for something they have done :
▪ The teacher really laid into us this morning -- told us we’d all fail if we didn’t start doing some work.
lay into about
▪ You should have heard my wife laying into me about coming home late last night.
3. to be criticized
▷ come in for criticism /ˌkʌm ɪn fəʳ ˈkrɪtə̇sɪz ə m/ [verb phrase]
▪ The unions came in for strong criticism from the government after the strike.
▪ Caro came in for a lot of criticism for his biography of the late president.
▷ be under attack/fire /biː ˌʌndər əˈtæk, ˈfaɪəʳ/ [verb phrase]
to be severely criticized, especially in public :
▪ Banks are under attack for their refusal to reduce interest rates on loans to small businesses.
come under attack/fire
▪ His theories came under attack from other scientists.
▪ The police department has come under fire for the recent rise in violent crime.
▷ get/take a lot of flak /ˌget, ˌteɪk ə lɒt əv ˈflækǁ-lɑːt-/ [verb phrase] informal
to be criticized a lot for something :
▪ Ferguson’s been getting a lot of flak for the team’s poor performance recently.
▪ The immigration department is taking a lot of political flak for not moving faster to help the refugees.
▷ be open to criticism /biː ˌəʊpən tə ˈkrɪtə̇sɪz ə m/ [verb phrase]
if someone or something is open to criticism, there are good reasons for criticizing them :
▪ The general is open to criticism for his handling of the war.
▪ Current reforms in the legal system may be open to criticism if they appear to be undemocratic.
▷ be in the firing line British /be on the firing line American /biː ɪn ðə ˈfaɪ ə rɪŋ laɪn, biː ɒn ðə ˈfaɪ ə rɪŋ laɪn/ [verb phrase]
to be the person who is most likely to be criticized for something, even if you are not the only person who is responsible for it :
▪ As head of the police department, Hall is constantly on the firing line.
▪ When you’re in the firing line, it’s tempting to avoid making difficult decisions.
▷ target /ˈtɑːʳgɪt, ˈtɑːʳgət/ [countable noun]
an organization, person in authority etc that is criticized, especially by a lot of people :
target of
▪ Kay was the target of a noisy demonstration in which 54 people were arrested.
target for
▪ The Communist Party has become the main target for critical attack among left-wing intellectuals.
4. to criticize someone or something unfairly
▷ find fault with /ˌfaɪnd ˈfɔːlt wɪð/ [verb phrase]
to criticize things that are wrong with someone or something, especially small and unimportant things :
▪ No-one enjoys working for a boss who always finds fault with their work.
find fault with somebody for something
▪ The report found fault with the police department for its handling of the case.
▷ pick holes in /ˌpɪk ˈhəʊlz ɪn/ [verb phrase] especially British, informal
to criticize small details in someone’s ideas or plans - use this about someone who seems to be deliberately looking for problems and mistakes :
▪ As soon as she stopped talking, Janet’s colleagues began to pick holes in the idea.
▷ knock /nɒkǁnɑːk/ [transitive verb]
to criticize someone, their work, or their performance in an unfair and annoying way :
▪ It’s hard to knock Gordon because he always works so hard.
▪ Critics knocked his latest film for its portrayal of women.
don’t knock it!
▪ Hey, don’t knock it! It’s the only suit I’ve got!
▷ put down /ˌpʊt ˈdaʊn/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to make someone feel unimportant or stupid especially by criticizing them in public :
put down somebody
▪ Television programs always seem to put down people from the South.
put somebody down
▪ She enjoys putting me down in front of other people.
▷ slag off /ˌslæg ˈɒf/ [transitive phrasal verb] British informal
to criticize someone, especially in a nasty and unfair way :
slag off somebody
▪ She spent the whole evening slagging off her ex-boyfriend.
slag somebody off
▪ When the team isn’t winning everyone starts slagging them off.
▷ bitch about /ˈbɪtʃ əbaʊt/ [verb phrase] informal
to make nasty remarks about someone when that person is not there :
▪ People in our office are always bitching about each other.
▷ get at /ˈget æt/ [transitive phrasal verb] informal
to keep criticizing someone by making remarks about their behaviour or habits, especially in an unkind or annoying way :
▪ I try not to take it personally -- he gets at everyone on the team.
get at about
▪ My mother keeps getting at me about the state of my room.
▷ nit-picking /ˈnɪt ˌpɪkɪŋ/ [uncountable noun] informal
the annoying habit of criticizing someone about unimportant details, especially in someone’s work :
▪ I’ve had enough of your constant nit-picking. Why can’t you say something encouraging?
nitpicking [adjective only before noun]
▪ nitpicking remarks
5. something you say or write in order to criticize
▷ criticism /ˈkrɪtɪsɪz ə m, ˈkrɪtəsɪz ə m/ [countable/uncountable noun]
what you say or write when you criticize someone or something :
▪ Bill’s very sensitive to any kind of criticism.
criticism of
▪ The report makes many criticisms of the nation’s prison system.
severe/strong criticism
▪ The government faces severe criticism for its slow response to the disaster.
come in for criticism
be criticized
▪ Taylor has come in for a lot of criticism for his part in the affair.
▷ attack /əˈtæk/ [countable noun]
a statement that criticizes someone publicly, especially in politics or business :
attack on
▪ O'Brien promised to continue his attacks on the film industry.
come under attack from somebody
be criticized by someone
▪ Once again the oil companies have come under attack from environmentalists.
launch an attack on somebody/something
▪ France launched a bitter attack on EU proposals to reduce farm subsidies.
▷ slur /slɜːʳ/ [countable noun]
unfair criticism that reduces the good opinion that people have about someone :
▪ Your accusation of bribe-taking is a slur which I shall never forgive.
▷ put-down /ˈpʊt daʊn/ [countable noun] spoken informal
something that someone says to someone, especially when other people are there, that criticizes them and makes them feel stupid or unimportant :
▪ She was a master of the sarcastic put-down.
▪ I didn’t mean it as a put-down but I could tell from her response that she took my criticism personally.
6. intended to criticize someone or something
▷ critical /ˈkrɪtɪk ə l/ [adjective]
a critical statement, report, or description criticizes someone or something :
▪ Critical remarks by a teacher can damage the confidence of children.
highly critical
very critical
▪ The government has just published a highly critical report on the state of the education system.
▷ scathing /ˈskeɪðɪŋ/ [adjective]
criticizing someone or something very strongly, because you think they are completely wrong or of very low quality :
scathing attack/comments/report etc
▪ Her new book is a scathing attack on American imperialism in Central America.
▪ The health department issued a scathing report on conditions in local hospitals.
scathing about
▪ ‘The New York Times’ was particularly scathing about his performance.
▷ negative /ˈnegətɪv/ [adjective]
a negative comment, report etc is intended to criticize someone or something, especially in a way that is unnecessary or unfair; a negative person has a tendency to criticize or complain about everything, especially when this is annoying or unfair :
▪ The portrayal of working women in the media tends to be very negative.
▪ You shouldn’t let his negative comments get you down - he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
▪ I wish you’d stop being so negative all the time!
7. someone who criticizes
▷ critic /ˈkrɪtɪk/ [countable noun]
someone who criticizes someone or something especially in public :
▪ The Prime Minister answered his critics in a televised speech.
critic of
▪ Daley accused critics of the city’s Police Department of lying.