But nerves were rattled, and the mere rumor of yet another attack jangled them further.
Even the mere rumor of snow got them in a tizzy, chatting about school cancellations, snowball fights, building snowmen.
It is a common experience for journalists covering low-intensity conflicts to see masses of civilians running from the mere rumor of far-off attacks.
The mere rumor of the presence of LRA fighters sends families fleeing into the bush.
Is it possible the mere rumor of a gay affair invoked such dread and fear in someone so invested in being a G.O.P. insider?
The supporters of both sides committed atrocities of their own: in the city of Cologne, the mere rumor of Gebhard's approaching army caused rioters to murder several people suspected of sympathizing with the Protestant cause.
But the iconic exec kiboshed the early retirement talk as mere rumor on Wednesday, distributing a memo to Citigroup employees.
I loved Bob Dylan back when names like Flaubert, Dostoyevsky and Woolf were mere rumors to me.
In the past, he has dismissed rumors of any sexual misconduct as mere rumors, refusing to comment further.
