defamation of character

Meaning

1. 1noununcountablelegal

   The act of making false statements that damage someone's reputation, which can lead to a lawsuit.

   Grammar: Uncountable: defamation of character is serious, not 'a defamation of character' (though 'a defamation case' works).

   Patterns

   • sue someone for defamation of character
   • accuse someone of defamation of character

   The actor sued the magazine for defamation of character after it printed the false story.

   Spreading lies about a coworker can amount to defamation of character.

   Her lawyer argued the post was defamation of character because it was untrue.

Common combinations

sue for defamation of character

He decided to sue for defamation of character.

a defamation of character lawsuit

The defamation of character lawsuit lasted two years.

accused of defamation of character

The blogger was accused of defamation of character.

claim defamation of character

She claimed defamation of character over the false rumors.

charge of defamation of character

The newspaper faced a charge of defamation of character.

Synonyms and how they differ

libel

Libel is defamation in writing or other lasting form, so it is narrower than defamation of character.

slander

Slander is spoken defamation, whereas defamation of character covers both spoken and written statements.

smear

Smear is an informal word for a damaging attack on reputation, not necessarily one that is legally false.

Opposites

Word family

defame verb

to damage someone's reputation with false statements

defamatory adjective

harmful to someone's good name

defamer noun

a person who defames someone

defamation noun

the act of damaging a reputation with false claims

Commonly confused: defamation of character or criticism?

Practice

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