Defame — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/dɪsplˈuːm/

🇬🇧British English

/dɪfˈeɪm/

🇮🇳Indian English

/dɪfˈeɪm/

2 syllables Say it as /dɪsplˈuːm/.

Examples

The journalists have defamed me!
The article in the paper sullied my reputation

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

smear asperse smirch slander denigrate calumniate sully besmirch

Parts of Speech

verb	charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone “The journalists have defamed me!”

Word Forms

defamatory	adjective	(used of statements) harmful and often untrue; tending to discredit or malign
defamation	noun	a false accusation of an offense or a malicious misrepresentation of someone's words or actions
defamer	noun	one who attacks the reputation of another by slander or libel
slander	noun	an abusive attack on a person's character or good name
slanderer	noun	one who attacks the reputation of another by slander or libel
smirch	noun	an act that brings discredit to the person who does it
aspersion	noun	a disparaging remark
denigratory	adjective	(used of statements) harmful and often untrue; tending to discredit or malign
denigration	noun	an abusive attack on a person's character or good name
calumny	noun	a false accusation of an offense or a malicious misrepresentation of someone's words or actions
smear	noun	slanderous defamation

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

diffamieren

fälschlicherweise oder mit böswilliger Absicht eine Anklage erheben; den guten Namen und Ruf einer Person angreifen

🇫🇷French

diffamer

accuser faussement ou avec une intention malveillante ; attaquer la réputation et la réputation de quelqu'un

🇪🇸Spanish

difamar

acusar falsamente o con intenciones maliciosas; atacar el buen nombre y la reputación de alguien

🇮🇹Italian

diffamare

addebitare false o con intenti dannosi; attaccare il buon nome e la reputazione di qualcuno

🇳🇱Dutch

belasteren

valselijk of met kwade bedoelingen in rekening brengen; de goede naam en reputatie van iemand aantasten

🇵🇹Portuguese

difamar

cobrar falsamente ou com intenção maliciosa; atacar o bom nome e a reputação de alguém

🇷🇺Russian

порочить

предъявить обвинение ложно или со злым умыслом; нападать на доброе имя и репутацию кого-либо

India

🇮🇳Hindi

गाली देना

कीचड़ उछालना; किसी के अच्छे नाम और प्रतिष्ठा पर हमला करना

🇧🇩Bengali

মানহানি

মিথ্যা বা দূষিত অভিপ্রায় সঙ্গে চার্জ; কারো ভাল নাম এবং খ্যাতি আক্রমণ

🇮🇳Tamil

அவதூறு

தவறாக அல்லது தீங்கிழைக்கும் நோக்கத்துடன் கட்டணம் வசூலிக்கவும்; ஒருவரின் நல்ல பெயரையும் நற்பெயரையும் தாக்கும்

🇮🇳Telugu

పరువు తీస్తారు

తప్పుగా లేదా హానికరమైన ఉద్దేశ్యంతో వసూలు చేయడం; ఒకరి మంచి పేరు మరియు ప్రతిష్టపై దాడి చేయండి

🇮🇳Marathi

बदनामी

खोटे किंवा दुर्भावनापूर्ण हेतूने आरोप लावणे; एखाद्याच्या चांगल्या नावावर आणि प्रतिष्ठेवर हल्ला

🇮🇳Gujarati

બદનામ

ખોટો અથવા દૂષિત હેતુ સાથે આરોપ લગાવવો; કોઈના સારા નામ અને પ્રતિષ્ઠા પર હુમલો કરો

🇮🇳Kannada

ಮಾನಹಾನಿ

ತಪ್ಪಾಗಿ ಅಥವಾ ದುರುದ್ದೇಶಪೂರಿತ ಉದ್ದೇಶದಿಂದ ಶುಲ್ಕ ವಿಧಿಸಿ; ಯಾರೊಬ್ಬರ ಒಳ್ಳೆಯ ಹೆಸರು ಮತ್ತು ಖ್ಯಾತಿಯ ಮೇಲೆ ದಾಳಿ ಮಾಡಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

അപകീർത്തിപ്പെടുത്തുക

തെറ്റായി അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ദുരുദ്ദേശ്യത്തോടെ ചാർജ് ചെയ്യുക; ഒരാളുടെ നല്ല പേരും പ്രശസ്തിയും ആക്രമിക്കുക

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਬਦਨਾਮ ਕਰਨਾ

ਝੂਠੇ ਜਾਂ ਖਤਰਨਾਕ ਇਰਾਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਦੋਸ਼ ਲਗਾਉਣਾ; ਕਿਸੇ ਦੇ ਚੰਗੇ ਨਾਮ ਅਤੇ ਵੱਕਾਰ 'ਤੇ ਹਮਲਾ

🇵🇰Urdu

بدنام کرنا

جھوٹا الزام لگانا یا بدنیتی پر مبنی ارادے سے؛ کسی کی نیک نامی اور ساکھ پر حملہ کرنا

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

诽谤

虚假收费或恶意收费；攻击某人的好名声和声誉

🇯🇵Japanese

名誉毀損

虚偽または悪意を持って告発する。（人）の良い名声や評判を攻撃する

🇰🇷Korean

명예를 훼손하다

허위로 또는 악의적인 의도로 기소하는 행위 누군가의 명예와 명예를 공격하다

🇻🇳Vietnamese

nói xấu

tính phí sai hoặc có mục đích xấu; tấn công tên tốt và danh tiếng của ai đó

🇹🇭Thai

หมิ่นประมาท

เรียกเก็บเงินอันเป็นเท็จหรือมีเจตนาร้าย โจมตีชื่อเสียงและชื่อเสียงที่ดีของใครบางคน

🇮🇩Indonesian

memfitnah

tuduhan palsu atau dengan niat jahat; menyerang nama baik dan reputasi seseorang

🇵🇭Filipino

paninirang-puri

singilin nang mali o may malisyosong layunin; atakehin ang mabuting pangalan at reputasyon ng isang tao

🇲🇾Malay

memfitnah

tuduhan palsu atau dengan niat jahat; menyerang nama baik dan nama baik seseorang

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

التشهير

التهمة زوراً أو بنية خبيثة؛ مهاجمة الاسم الجيد والسمعة الطيبة لشخص ما

🇮🇷Persian

بدنام کردن

اتهام نادرست یا با نیت مخرب؛ حمله به نام و شهرت کسی

🇹🇷Turkish

karalamak

Yanlışlıkla veya kötü niyetle suçlamada bulunmak; birinin iyi ismine ve itibarına saldırmak

🇮🇱Hebrew

לְהַשְׁמִיץ

להאשים כוזב או בכוונת זדון; לתקוף את שמו הטוב והמוניטין של מישהו

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'defame'?

The primary meaning of 'defame' is 'charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'defame' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'defame' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'defame' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'defame' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'defame' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'defame' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'defame' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'defame' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'defame' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'defame' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted