calumninatory

The politician dismissed the calumninatory remarks as baseless.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Tending to slander or defame: "calumninatory" describes language or behavior that is intended to harm someone's reputation through false and malicious statements.

Usage Examples

• (His statements were intended to slander the opponent.)
• (She avoided making defamatory comments.)

Advanced Usage

• "calumninatory speech": spoken words that are slanderous or defamatory.

  • The court ruled that the broadcast contained calumninatory speech, as it falsely accused the journalist of corruption. (The speech was found to be defamatory.)

• "a calumninatory campaign": a coordinated effort to spread false accusations.

  • The company's reputation suffered due to a calumninatory campaign launched by a rival firm. (A campaign of slander damaged the company's image.)

Variants and Related Words

• Calumniate (verb): to make false and defamatory statements about someone.

  • They tried to calumniate her by spreading rumors about her past. (They attempted to slander her.)

• Calumny (noun): a false and malicious statement intended to damage someone's reputation.

  • The accusation was nothing but calumny, invented by jealous rivals. (The statement was a slanderous falsehood.)

• Calumnious (adjective): (synonym of calumninatory) containing or using calumny.

  • His calumnious article was later retracted by the newspaper. (The article was defamatory.)

Synonyms

• Slanderous: making false spoken statements that damage a person's reputation.
• Defamatory: harming someone's reputation through false statements (written or spoken).
• Libelous: (specifically written) containing false statements that damage reputation.

Related Idioms

• To drag someone's name through the mud: to say unpleasant things about someone publicly, damaging their reputation.
  • The calumninatory article dragged the celebrity's name through the mud. (The article slandered the celebrity.)