English
Smeargate
From smear + -gate.
Formed from smear + -gate
Proto-Indo-European *smérus ‘grease, fat’
…
Proto-Germanic *smirwijaną ‘to smear, anoint’
Proto-West Germanic *smirwijan ‘to smear’
Old English smerian ‘to anoint or rub with grease, oil, etc’
Middle English smeren
English smear
Today it means
name A political scandal of 2009 in which Derek Draper and Damian McBride plotted to post false rumours on the Internet about the private lives of prominent members of the Conservative Party and their spouses.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Smeargate