libelous

adjective

li·​bel·​ous ˈlī-b(ə-)ləs How to pronounce libelous (audio)
variants or libellous
: constituting or including a libel : defamatory
a libelous statement

Examples of libelous in a Sentence

libelous statements about a celebrity for which the tabloid was sued
Recent Examples on the Web The lawsuit alleges the principal and the district violated the California Education Code, which provides strong protections for student journalism and free speech with few exceptions, such as content that is obscene, libelous or slanderous. Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2024 If there were whispers that something more perverse or calamitous might have transpired, they were branded libelous, sensationalist, or otherwise untrue. Rebecca Panovka, Harper's Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024 Picasso supporters attacked the book, calling it libelous and vindictive. Harrison Smith, Washington Post, 6 June 2023 Gottlieb has previously defended her methods and called ProPublica's reporting libelous but not identified any inaccuracies in the reporting. Hannah Dreyfus, ProPublica, 26 May 2023 The second is that the websites cannot be held legally responsible for most of what their users post online, shielding the companies from lawsuits over libelous speech, extremist content and real-world harm linked to their platforms. David McCabe, New York Times, 19 Jan. 2023 The jury agreed with the plaintiff’s accusation that five quotations in my article were false and libelous. Janet Malcolm, The New York Review of Books, 24 Sep. 2020 More recently, The Washington Post, CNN and NBC settled lawsuits with the family of a Kentucky teen who alleged that coverage of his 2019 encounter with a Native American protester at the Lincoln Memorial was libelous. Sarah Ellison, Washington Post, 29 Mar. 2023 The principle that the truth cannot be libelous became a bedrock of American free-speech law, and was incorporated into the laws of many states after the U.S. was founded. The Week Staff, The Week, 26 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'libelous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1619, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of libelous was in 1619

Dictionary Entries Near libelous

Cite this Entry

“Libelous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/libelous. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

libelous

adjective
li·​bel·​ous
variants or libellous
: being a libel

Legal Definition

libelous

adjective
li·​bel·​ous
variants also libellous
: constituting or including libel
a libelous magazine article

More from Merriam-Webster on libelous

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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