Nearby Words

defamatory

[dih-fam-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee] Origin

de·fam·a·to·ry

[dih-fam-uh-tawr-ee, -tohr-ee]
adjective
containing defamation; injurious to reputation; slanderous or libelous: She claimed that the article in the magazine was defamatory.

Origin:
1585–95; < Medieval Latin diffāmātōrius, equivalent to Latin diffāmā(re) (see defame) + -tōrious -tory1

non·de·fam·a·to·ry, adjective
un·de·fam·a·to·ry, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Defamatory has a plethora of syllables.
So is cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine. Does it mean:
a white, crystalline, water-insoluble, powerful high explosive, C3H6N6O6, used chiefly in bombs and shells.
an obscure term ostensibly referring to a lung disease caused by silica dust, sometimes cited as one of the longest words in the English language.
Collins
World English Dictionary
defamatory (dɪˈfæmətərɪ, -trɪ)
 
adj
injurious to someone's name or reputation
 
defamatorily
 
adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

defamatory
1590s, from M.L.diffamatorius, from diffamat-, from pp. stem of diffamare (see defame).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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