libel
Law.
defamation by written, printed, or broadcast words or pictures: Intentionally or knowingly posting content that constitutes libel is prohibited.: Compare slander (def. 3).
the act or crime of publishing or broadcasting a defamatory statement:The author was convicted of libel and sentenced to a yearlong jail term.
a formal written declaration or statement, as one containing the allegations of a plaintiff or the grounds of a charge.
anything that is defamatory or that maliciously or damagingly misrepresents: He blames me for his getting kicked out of school, so he spread this libel against me in revenge.
to publish or broadcast a libel against: The journalist received a suspended three-year prison sentence for allegedly libeling the president in an online article.
to misrepresent damagingly: So it's just fine to smear and libel the writer, but it's not okay to call someone out for doing so?
to institute suit against by a libel, as in an admiralty court.
Origin of libel
1confusables note For libel
Other words from libel
- in·ter·li·bel, verb (used with object), in·ter·li·beled, in·ter·li·bel·ing or (especially British) in·ter·li·belled, in·ter·li·bel·ling.
- un·li·beled, adjective
- un·li·belled, adjective
Words that may be confused with libel
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use libel in a sentence
"But if a person libels on paper and gets denied that doesn't mean law enforcement will come after them," says the manager.
In a succession of libels Spencer Cowper was held up to the execration of the public.
The History of England from the Accession of James II. | Thomas Babington MacaulayNever were libels on persons of authority and influence uttered with such terrible license.
Beacon Lights of History, Volume I | John LordEncouraged by their success against Wilkes, the ministers waged war on political libels.
The Political History of England - Vol. X. | William HuntCan't I turn the honest penny, scribbling for the weekly press, And in writing Sunday libels drown my private wretchedness?
The Book of Humorous Verse | Various
We never spread insulting libels against foreigners amongst our people.
British Dictionary definitions for libel
/ (ˈlaɪbəl) /
law
the publication of defamatory matter in permanent form, as by a written or printed statement, picture, etc
the act of publishing such matter
any defamatory or unflattering representation or statement
ecclesiastical law a claimant's written statement of claim
Scots law the formal statement of a charge
law to make or publish a defamatory statement or representation about (a person)
to misrepresent injuriously
ecclesiastical law to bring an action against (a person) in the ecclesiastical courts
Origin of libel
1Derived forms of libel
- libeller or libelist, noun
- libellous or libelous, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Cultural definitions for libel
A written, printed, or pictorial statement that unjustly defames someone publicly. Prosecution of libel as a punishable offense puts some measure of restriction on freedom of the press under the First Amendment (see also First Amendment).
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Browse