Collocations for rumour - noun

malicious, nasty, scurrilous, ugly, vicious | baseless, false, unconfirmed, unfounded, unsubstantiated, wild | strong, widespread | persistent

start | fuel
His lengthy absence from work fuelled rumours that he might have been sacked.

spread | hear | believe | deny | confirm
The actor confirmed rumours that he will be leaving the series.

quash, scotch, silence
The Chief Executive issued a statement to quash rumours of financial problems.

circulate, get about/around, go around/round, spread | abound, be flying about/around, be rife
Rumours about an impending royal divorce were rife.

sweep sth
The rumour quickly swept the town.

persist

factory, mill
The Washington rumour mill suggests the money changed hands illegally.

amid/amidst ~s
The manager resigned suddenly amidst rumours of misconduct.

~ about/concerning/surrounding
rumours surrounding the closure of the hospital

~ of
There were persistent rumours of drug taking among staff.

rumour has it that …
Rumour has it that he was sacked from his last job.

there is no truth in the rumour
There is no truth in the rumour that the head teacher is about to resign.