From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishdebunkde‧bunk /ˌdiːˈbʌŋk/ verb [transitive] PROVEto show that an idea or belief is false His claims were later debunked by fellow academics. —debunker noun [countable]→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
debunk• In her book she debunks a lot of the claims made by astrologers.• And it debunked and later destroyed the reputation of a great sea captain, a good friend of my father.• The view that Anne was a sentimental Jacobite who secretly wished her brother-in-law to succeed her has now been debunked as myth.• But as Sulloway was plugging away, other scientists were busy debunking birth order.• Hence, the spate of was-the-risk-exaggerated, debunking stories.• Payton wants to debunk the myth that economics is a science.• The study debunks the myth that men are better at math than women.• Fortunately, the Internet itself provides a good way to debunk these hoaxes.• In both poems, Leapor attempts to debunk unreal expectations of marriage.Origin debunk (1900-2000) → BUNK12 