Other forms: reviled, reviling, reviles
To revile is to abuse somebody in bitter language. Reviled by the press, revile his memory, universally reviled.
It is stronger than criticise and more public than insult — being reviled is being attacked in words by many people. It is nearly always used in the passive. Note vile, from which it comes: to revile somebody is to call them cheap or worthless.
1verbrevileTo abuse somebody in bitter language.
“Once a national hero, the general was reviled after the defeat.”
revile is an abusing.
Middle English revilen comes from Old French aviler, to make vile, from vil, cheap. Vile and vilify come from the same cheapness.
Old French
aviler — to make vile or cheap, disprize, disesteem
Middle English
revilen
English, today
revile
Built from
From Middle English revilen, from re + Old French aviler (“to make vile or cheap, disprize, disesteem”), from a- (“to”) + vil (“vile, cheap”); see vile.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA