as in erroneous
causing or intended to cause unjust injury to a person's good name
a calumnious campaign ad that went well beyond the negativity to which voters had become so richly accustomed
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for calumnious
Adjective
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This story has been updated to correct erroneous information originally released by the city of Radcliff.—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
3 Mar. 2026 -
This was due to erroneous data provided by Dallas County, the Texas Secretary of State’s office told Hearst Newspapers.—
Bayliss Wagner,
Austin American Statesman,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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In recent weeks, though, her group has doubled in size, and while in the past there were only two or three posts per day, Mitchell and her new moderators now have to wade through 60-plus comments ranging from helpful to libelous.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
25 Apr. 2025
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And in this age of clickbait journalism, even those members of the legacy media have resorted to libelous headlines and false reports to generate views.—
Zach Schonfeld,
The Hill,
24 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Keefer called these claims baseless and slanderous.—
Bradley Hohulin,
IndyStar,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Walz, who suspended his campaign for a third term in office just weeks after Thompson’s remarks, described the $9 billion figure as speculative and defamatory.—
Alex Derosier,
Twin Cities,
23 Feb. 2026
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Defendant Metcalf provided false information to Defendant Johnson about what Plaintiff Kennedy allegedly said, thereby instigating and authorizing the publication of the defamatory and reckless statements, which were intended to harm Plaintiff Kennedy.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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During a panel this week for skincare brand Aveeno, artist-activist-author Copeland, 43, weighed in on the Oscar nominee’s scandalous aside, which sparked backlash from dancers, opera singers and others last week.—
Alexandra Del Rosario,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Mar. 2026
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But for women of Austen’s circumstances, living genteel lives without actual land or ample income, employment would have been inappropriate, even scandalous (recall Philadelphia’s slippery slope scenario), and therefore unthinkable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Richards and the governor’s office pushed back on false assertions that Newsom and his wife, First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom, were stealing money from the state through her office that same day.—
Taryn Luna,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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Air power cannot overthrow a government, some say, which is on one level true—a fighter jet cannot take the keys to the presidential palace, after all—and on another level, obviously false.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The statement came after Bloomberg reported that Oracle and OpenAI had dropped plans to expand the site, though Oracle said media reports regarding Abilene were incorrect.—
Jordan Novet,
CNBC,
10 Mar. 2026
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He was charged in 2013 with tax fraud for filing an incorrect return tied to a Ponzi scheme operated by another man.—
Nick Penzenstadler,
USA Today,
10 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Calumnious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/calumnious. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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