defame
verb (used with object)
to attack the good name or reputation of, as by uttering or publishing maliciously or falsely anything injurious; slander or libel; calumniate.
have defamed
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present perfectof defame.present perfect
Used to describe actions that started in the past and continue into or have direct relevance to the present.
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.
While Trump was found to have defamed and sexually abused Carroll, the jury rejected her claim of rape as defined in New York's penal code.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
Giuliani is in the process of paying for a $148 million judgment after he was found to have defamed former Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Shayne Moss.
From Salon ● Nov. 8, 2024
And to kick things off this week, the former president went on CNBC’s Squawk Box and may have defamed Carroll again.
From Slate ● Mar. 11, 2024
He had asked the judge to stop Ms. Carroll’s defamation lawsuit since, he said, he could not have defamed her in 2019 when he denied her allegation of a decades-old rape.
From New York Times ● Jun. 13, 2023
Thoughtless writers have talked Lincoln's ancestry down, and careless biographers have defamed him.
From The Battle of Principles A Study of the Heroism and Eloquence of the Anti-Slavery Conflict by Newell Dwight Hillis
