INDEX:
1. things that people say, which may or may not be true
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ SAY
↑ TRUE
↑ UNTRUE
↑ LIE
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1. things that people say, which may or may not be true
▷ rumour British /rumor American /ˈruːməʳ/ [countable/uncountable noun]
information which is passed from one person to another and which may or may not be true, especially information about people’s private lives or about something that a government, company etc has done or is planning to do :
▪ The truth finally came out after months of rumour and gossip.
rumour about/of
▪ What’s this rumour about you and Vince Foster?
▪ There were rumours of bombings in the northern part of the country.
rumour that
▪ The band denied the rumours that they may be splitting up.
hear a rumour
▪ Have you heard the rumour about him and his secretary?
spread a rumour
tell other people a rumour
▪ Someone’s been spreading nasty rumours about me.
it’s only a rumour
▪ I don’t think he’s going to resign. It’s only a rumour.
rumour has it that
there is a rumour that
▪ Rumour has it that there will be major job cuts in the new year.
▷ speculation /ˌspekjɑˈleɪʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
if there is speculation about something, especially about something that is happening in politics or public life, a lot of people are talking about it and trying to guess what the truth is - used especially in news reports :
speculation about
▪ There was a great deal of speculation about a possible merger involving Belgium’s largest banks.
speculation that
▪ Washington was buzzing with speculation that the senator would resign.
amid speculation
▪ Share prices increased amid speculation that the Bank of England would cut interest rates.
prompt/fuel etc speculation
start or increase speculation
▪ The news fuelled speculation that the President’s health had become significantly worse.
pure/wild/idle speculation
speculation that is very unlikely to be true
▪ Reports that the couple are getting a divorce have been dismissed as wild speculation.
▷ gossip /ˈgɒsɪp, ˈgɒsəpǁˈgɑː-/ [uncountable noun]
information which people tell each other about other people’s private lives, and which may or may not be true, especially when this is done in an unkind or disapproving way :
▪ I got back from my vacation eager to hear all the latest gossip.
gossip about
▪ The conversation began to drift towards gossip about their colleagues.
exchange gossip (with somebody)
tell each other gossip
▪ Mrs Busby was always ready to exchange local gossip with the customers who came into her shop.
gossip column
part of a newspaper that contains gossip about famous people
▪ Recently her name has showed up a lot in gossip columns.
malicious gossip
unkind and untrue gossip that someone spreads deliberately
▪ I don’t believe Liz had an affair with him. That’s just malicious gossip.
▷ scandal /ˈskændl/ [countable/uncountable noun]
when something immoral or shocking happens, often involving important people, organizations, or events, and it becomes known by the general public :
▪ Have you heard the latest scandal? Mick Green’s been arrested for bribery and corruption.
scandal over
▪ The scandal over the deal forced the corporation’s president to resign in disgrace.
a scandal breaks/erupts
▪ A major scandal erupted in November 1989, with the discovery that cattle in the UK and Netherlands had been given food contaminated with lead.
▷ reports /rɪˈpɔːʳts/ [plural noun]
information or news that you think might be true, although you do not have any definite proof :
reports of
▪ The government has promised to investigate reports of police corruption.
unconfirmed reports
reports that have not yet been proved to be true
▪ We are getting unconfirmed reports of a gas explosion in downtown Los Angeles.
▷ talk /tɔːk/ [uncountable noun]
what people tell each other about other people’s personal lives, especially about their sexual relationships :
▪ In those days there was always talk if two people lived together without being married.
just talk
a rumour that is unlikely to be true
▪ ‘They say he’s having an affair with a colleague at work.’ ‘That’s just talk.’
▷ hearsay /ˈhɪəʳseɪ/ [uncountable noun]
something that you have been told, or that you have heard only indirectly, but which you have no way of proving to be either true or untrue :
▪ All the accounts were based on hearsay rather than eye-witness reports.
▪ Judge Wagenbach ruled that the statement was inadmissible as evidence, after Mr. Lamb’s attourney argued that it was hearsay.
rely on hearsay
▪ A factual book is a lot better than relying on hearsay from friends.
hearsay evidence
evidence given in a court of law by someone who did not directly see something happen
▪ The court is not allowed to admit hearsay evidence.
▷ hear something on/through the grapevine /ˌhɪəʳ something ɒn, θruː ðə ˈgreɪpvaɪn/ [verb phrase]
if you hear some news or information on or through the grapevine, someone else tells it to you unofficially, often in conversation :
▪ ‘Who told you I was moving house?’ ‘Oh, I just heard it on the grapevine.’
▪ Freddie was distressed when, through the grapevine, he heard of Liza’s marriage.
the school/hospital/industry etc grapevine
▪ According to the high-school grapevine, Kelly wants me to ask her out on a date.
▷ be rumoured/rumored to be /biː ˈruːməʳd tə biː/ [verb phrase]
if someone or something is rumoured to be doing something, be happening, be in a particular condition etc, that is what you have heard people saying :
▪ It’s a five star hotel and rumored to be the best in Europe.
▪ The hospital is rumoured to be heading for closure, after the government’s announcement on cuts.