noun

defamation

deh-fuh-MAY-shuhn

noun

The act of damaging someone's reputation through false statements, spoken or written.

"The newspaper faced a defamation lawsuit over the false accusations."

"Spreading that rumour about her could count as defamation."

How to Use Defamation

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishSaying or writing false things that harm someone's reputation.

Common mistake

Spoken defamation is technically called "slander," and written defamation "libel" — "defamation" is the umbrella legal term covering both.

Common pairings

defamation lawsuit sue for defamation defamation of character

defamations plural

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Can you complete this real example?

The newspaper faced a _____ lawsuit over the false accusations.

From Old French diffamacion, from Latin diffāmātiō, built on the same root as "defame."

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