rumor mill

plural rumor mills · alternative rumour mill

1. USidiomaticA process in which a group or network of persons originate or promulgate gossip and other unsubstantiated claims.

   For months the Washington rumor mill has ground out gossip about who might replace U.S. Ambassador Frederick E. Nolting Jr.

   1963 July 5, “A Kennedy Speaks to a Lodge”, in Time

   2 more examples

   Unofficial results instead traveled through the rumor mill, passed along on mobile phones from one part of the country to another.

   2008 March 30, “Zimbabwe Opposition Claims Victory”, in New York Times, retrieved 19 Sep 2008

   The rumour mill is also abuzz with chat that Alessandro Michele, who parted with Gucci last year, is to make a return to the fashion frontline.

   2023 September 26, Jess Cartner-Morley, “Dior opens Paris fashion week with feminist sloganeering on the catwalk”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

   Synonyms: gossip mill