as in defamation
the making of false statements that damage another's reputation
the governor's office issued a statement accusing the state's largest newspaper of libel
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to smear
to make untrue and harmful statements about
the court decided that the newspaper's reportage of the former mayor, while irresponsible, did not constitute an effort to libel him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of libel
Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 18 Apr. 2025
Will the media’s libel protection last in the age of Trump?
—Ashley Oliver, The Washington Examiner, 15 Apr. 2025
Dan Greene, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
As a new, inexpensive Chevrolet appeared in 1927 and The Dearborn Independent was sued for libeling a number of Jewish businessmen, Ford threw in the towel and apologized.
—George Pendle, airmail.news, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for libel
Noun
In a civil lawsuit alleging slander and libel, Eriksen said Christopher and Jessica Ikner were making false allegations against her and harassing her.
—Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 18 Apr. 2025
Will the media’s libel protection last in the age of Trump?
—Ashley Oliver, The Washington Examiner, 15 Apr. 2025
Verb
Luckily for anyone still Christmas shopping, however, the court has continued pressing Giuliani for his assets, which are expected to be sold at auction to pay for a portion of the damages owed to the plaintiffs, whom Giuliani libelled with false claims of election malfeasance.
—Dan Greene, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024
As a new, inexpensive Chevrolet appeared in 1927 and The Dearborn Independent was sued for libeling a number of Jewish businessmen, Ford threw in the towel and apologized.
—George Pendle, airmail.news, 15 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for libel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for libel
Noun
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Nonetheless, as Push told GQ, his label and their parent label were concerned about the optics of two of Drizzy’s foes linking up amid the ongoing defamation lawsuit.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
24 June 2025
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Shawe, not one to stay out of the courts, sued the lawyer representing the class, Jeremiah Frei-Pearson, for defamation in May 2024.—
Phoebe Liu,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
Verb
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In extreme cases, some parents will threaten to smear the therapist's name, leave bad reviews, complain to the licensing board, or even threaten the therapist’s physical safety.—
Sherri Gordon,
Parents,
23 June 2025
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The assertion by certain anonymous users online is a typically out-of-context and absurd effort to create fake news for clicks and to smear.—
Chloe Mayer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 June 2025
Verb
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While some humans may slander pigs as dirty, messy, lazy animals, others celebrate these intelligent animals that have a long history in agriculture.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
11 June 2025
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Reed went on to report a series of grievances against the Griffin teachers union and said she’s been slandered and disrespected by the community.—
Carole Carlson,
Chicago Tribune,
6 May 2025
Verb
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The fight has provided fodder for Democrats, who are calling for an investigation into Trump’s alleged connection to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein.—
Naomi Lim,
The Washington Examiner,
8 June 2025
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As the smiling Red Bull players mingled on the pitch after the win, the Galaxy’s players looked genuinely disgraced amid Vanney’s sharp stares.—
Felipe Cardenas,
New York Times,
11 May 2025
Verb
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The jury ultimately ruled that Heard did defame Depp in the op-ed, while also ruling Depp defamed Heard in the course of fighting back against her charges.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
22 June 2025
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More politics news: A federal jury found MyPillow founder Mike Lindell defamed a former Dominion Voting Systems employee after the 2020 election.—
Elizabeth Robinson,
NBC news,
17 June 2025
Verb
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Terrible policy Perhaps Gabbard is sounding the alarm to discredit efforts — including a sanctions bill held up in Congress pending a green light from Trump — to pressure Putin into a meaningful negotiation on ending his war.—
Marc Champion,
Mercury News,
13 June 2025
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The irony is that the FTC is blind to the meaning of such substantial investment from Amazon, the very investment that thoroughly discredits the FTC’s case.—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
9 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Libel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/libel. Accessed 1 Jul. 2025.
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