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
She also denied online rumours that Epstein introduced her to Donald Trump, calling them "mean-spirited attempts to defame my reputation".
From BBC ● Apr. 9, 2026
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
Last year, she filed suit against the church, seeking to end what she said were the “mob-style tactics” it had used to harass and defame her.
From New York Times ● Nov. 20, 2024
And do you know what this all means—that the gossipmongers once again have an opportunity to defame my son with these ridiculous rumors about his parentage.
From "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child" by J.K. Rowling
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
“The kind of speech that defames parents who have lost their children in a massacre is maybe the kind of speech you do want to deter. You do want to chill that speech,” Solomon said.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 6, 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
This is a reference to Article 112 of Thailand's criminal code, which states: "Whoever defames, insults or threatens the King, Queen, Heir-Apparent or Regent shall be punished with imprisonment of three to 15 years".
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2020
“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
South Korean police raided the Starbucks national headquarters Wednesday, the chain's local operator told AFP, following allegations an advertising campaign defamed activists slain in 1980 pro-democracy protests.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
The lawyer said the arrests happened now to prevent the brothers from having their day in court in an upcoming civil case they filed against a woman they claim defamed them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026
The ad did not mention Sullivan by name but he said he was defamed by the ad’s criticism of the police.
From Los Angeles Times ● 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
He who ventured to be thus eclectic would be defamed as Paine was.
From English Secularism A Confession Of Belief by George Jacob Holyoake
A civic group and bereaved families filed a complaint accusing members of the Shinsegae Group, which operates Starbucks Korea, of defaming and insulting the victims and relatives.
From Barron's ● Aug. 5, 2026
But the parade of horribles recounted by Mr. Shapiro are at once comic and terrifying: deans harassing speakers, law students defaming anyone holding divergent views, faculty obsessed with idiotic academic theories.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
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
Capriglione said he was “not above scrutiny,” but threatened legal action, seemingly against Current Revolt as well as Grace, for what he characterized as “lying and defaming me.”
From Salon ● Jul. 26, 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.
