›to damage the reputation of a person or group by saying or writing bad things about them that are not true: Mr Turnock claimed the editorial had defamed him.→ Comparelibel, slandernounDamaging reputationDisapproving and criticizingdefamation
/ˌdef.əˈmeɪ.ʃən/noun[U]›He is suing for defamation of character.Damaging reputationDisapproving and criticizingdefamatory
/dɪˈfæm.ə.tər.i//-tɔːr-/adjective›He claims the remarks were highly defamatory.Damaging reputationDisapproving and criticizing