defame
Americanverb (used with object)
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defames,
present (3rd person singular)
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defamed,
past participle, past
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defaming
present participle
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to attack the good name or reputation of, as by uttering or publishing maliciously or falsely anything injurious; slander or libel; calumniate.
The newspaper editorial defamed the politician.
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Archaic. to disgrace; bring dishonor upon.
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Archaic. to accuse.
verb
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to attack the good name or reputation of; slander; libel
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archaic to indict or accuse
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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defamesimple
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defamessimple
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have defamedperfect
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has defamedperfect
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am defamingprogressive
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are defamingprogressive
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is defamingprogressive
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have been defamingperfect progressive
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has been defamingperfect progressive
Past
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defamedsimple
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had defamedperfect
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was defamingprogressive
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were defamingprogressive
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had been defamingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of defame
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English defamen, from Anglo-French defamer or directly from Medieval Latin dēfāmāre, variant of Medieval Latin, Latin diffāmāre ( dē- de- for dif-; compare Latin dēfāmātus “infamous”) “to spread the news of, slander,” equivalent to dif- dif- + -fāmāre verbal derivative of fāma “news, rumor, slander” ( see fame); replacing Middle English diffamen, from Anglo-French, Old French diffamer or directly from Medieval Latin, Latin, as above
Explanation
Even though Joan Jett sang about not minding her bad reputation, most of us don't want others to defame us. To defame is to gossip, even if the story is made-up, with the goal of hurting someone's image. We usually think of fame as a positive thing. Love, admiration, and people wanting to be like you — it all comes with the territory. The de- in defame means "remove." So if someone tries to defame a person, fame — or a good reputation — is taken away. Celebrities protect themselves from those who want to defame them, arming themselves with lawyers.
Vocabulary lists containing defame
100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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New York Times Co. v. Sullivan (1964)
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Intermediate, List 6
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He has denied any wrongdoing and called the allegations an attempt to defame him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
"It is important that nothing is said that would either potentially defame an individual, nor impinge upon the police investigation which is ongoing," stated the letter, signed by two senior members of the church.
From BBC ● Dec. 14, 2025
When Musk hops on Twitter to defame people with wild accusations, his fanboys thrill.
From Salon ● Jun. 9, 2025
It contends that county officials went out of their way to defame Baldwin and their pursuit of criminal charges deprived the actor-producer of his civil rights.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 9, 2025
The films often had the opposite effect: Despite the mountains of evidence, many Hitler Youth told themselves that the films were exaggerated, if not invented by the Allies as propaganda intended to defame the Nazis.
From "Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow" by Susan Campbell Bartoletti
A Hong Kong arts hub cancelled the revival of an LGBTQ-themed play hours before tickets went on sale on Saturday, the cast said, after complaints that it "defames" the Chinese city.
From Barron's ● Oct. 18, 2025
"These are clear that we prohibit content that demeans, defames, or promotes discrimination."
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2022
Anyone who insults or defames key members of the royal family, including the king, queen, heir apparent or regent, can be punished by up to 15 years in prison on each count under the law.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 4, 2022
If she fails to do so or defames the singer, “Britney will be forced to consider and take all appropriate legal action.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 20, 2022
“It’s slanderous. It defames my good name. It’s a shameful way for a member of the Arcanum to behave.”
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
Rebel Wilson has been cleared of accusations that she defamed a young Australian actress, a Sydney court has found.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
"Today's Supreme Court decision affirms once and for all the jury's unanimous verdict that President Donald J. Trump sexually assaulted and defamed E. Jean Carroll," said Carroll's attorney Roberta Kaplan.
From Barron's ● Jun. 29, 2026
“Instead of actually listening to us and providing evidence of studies or environmental impact statements, we just get called names and bullied and defamed on national television.”
From Salon ● Jun. 12, 2026
District Judge Darrin Gayles, based in Miami, Fla., ruled Trump hadn’t made a valid legal claim that he was defamed by an article about a letter to financier Jeffrey Epstein bearing Trump’s name.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 13, 2026
You ought to admit publicly that you slandered the dead; that you falsified history; that you defamed the defenceless; that you deliber- 517 ately denied what you had published in your own paper.
From The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 5 (of 12) Dresden Edition?Discussions by Ingersoll, Robert Green
Starbucks quickly rolled it back, saying it was unintentional but civic groups filed a criminal complaint against the company, demanding the police investigate it for defaming victims of the military dictatorship.
From BBC ● Aug. 5, 2026
Chaves has had strained ties with local media, whom he accuses of defaming him.
From Barron's ● May 5, 2026
“The whole thing’s about defaming me,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
A federal judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit in which Drake had accused the world’s biggest record company of defaming him with the release and promotion of Kendrick Lamar’s Grammy-winning diss track “Not Like Us.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2025
The broken bit of mirror danced away from him; he picked it up and turned it over in his fingers, thinking, thinking of Dumbledore and the lies with which Rita Skeeter was defaming him....
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
