Adjacent Words

Defame definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

DEFAME,
1. To slander; falsely and maliciously to utter words respecting another which tend to injure his reputation or occupation; as to say, a judge is corrupt; a man is perjured; a trader is a knave.
2. To speak evil of; to dishonor by false reports; to calumniate; to libel; to impair reputation by acts or words.
Being defamed, we entreat. 1 Cor. Iv.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone; "The journalists have defamed me!" "The article in the paper sullied my reputation" [syn: defame, slander, smirch, asperse, denigrate, calumniate, smear, sully, besmirch]

Merriam Webster's

transitive verb (defamed; defaming) Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French & Medieval Latin; Anglo-French deffamer, diffamer, from Medieval Latin defamare, alteration of Latin diffamare, from dis- + fama reputation, fame Date: 14th century 1. archaic disgrace 2. to harm the reputation of by libel or slander 3. archaic accuse Synonyms: see malign • defamer noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. attack the good reputation of; speak ill of. Derivatives: defamation n. defamatory adj. defamer n. Etymology: ME f. OF diffamer etc. f. L diffamare spread evil report (as DIS-, fama report)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Defame De*fame", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Defamed; p. pr. & vb. n. Defaming.] [OE. defamen, diffamen, from F. diffamer, or OF. perh. defamer, fr. L. diffamare (cf. defamatus infamous); dis- (in this word confused with de) + fama a report. See Fame.] 1. To harm or destroy the good fame or reputation of; to disgrace; especially, to speak evil of maliciously; to dishonor by slanderous reports; to calumniate; to asperse. 2. To render infamous; to bring into disrepute. My guilt thy growing virtues did defame; My blackness blotted thy unblemish'd name. --Dryden. 3. To charge; to accuse. [R.] Rebecca is . . . defamed of sorcery practiced on the person of a noble knight. --Sir W. Scott. Syn: To asperse; slander; calumniate; vilify. See Asperse.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Defame De*fame", n. Dishonor. [Obs.] --Chaucer.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(defames, defaming, defamed) If someone defames another person or thing, they say bad and untrue things about them. (FORMAL) Sgt Norwood complained that the article defamed him. VERB: V n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

v. a. Asperse, slander, malign, calumniate, traduce, vilify, revile, libel, blacken, abuse, blemish, run down, speak ill of.

Moby Thesaurus

asperse, attaint, bad-mouth, belie, bespatter, blacken, blot, blow upon, brand, calumniate, cast aspersions on, cast reflections on, censure, defile, denigrate, disapprove, disparage, expose, expose to infamy, gibbet, hang in effigy, libel, malign, misrepresent, pillory, reprimand, scandalize, slander, slur, smear, soil, stain, stigmatize, sully, taint, tarnish, throw mud at, traduce, vilify