slander
SLAN-der
/ˈslændəɹ/
The action or crime of making a false spoken statement damaging to a person's reputation; to make such statements.
Slander is strictly spoken defamation. It is temporary and oral, unlike libel, which is written or recorded.
The story behind the word. Slander travels a long linguistic road from the Latin 'scandalum' (stumbling block, cause of offense). It entered Old French as 'esclandre' before crossing into English, losing its initial 'sc' sound but keeping its scandalous heart.
Word relationships
- calumny: Calumny is a more formal, literary term for making false and malicious statements, while slander has a specific legal definition.
- praise: Praise honors someone's reputation, whereas slander seeks to destroy it.
Commonly confused with
- libel: Slander is spoken defamation; libel is written or published defamation.
Word family
- slanderous (adjective): Containing or constituting slander.
- slanderer (noun): A person who utters slander.
Collocations
- sue for slander
- actionable slander
- utter slander
Example sentences
- "He sued his former business partner for slander after she publicly accused him of embezzlement during a town hall meeting." Legal dispute
Memory hook
Slander starts with 'S' for 'Spoken'. Spoken scandal is slander.
When not to use
Do not use slander if the defamatory statement was printed in a newspaper, book, or posted online; that is libel.
Fun facts
- In ancient Roman law, slanderers could be sentenced to have their tongues branded if their false words caused severe social harm.
Take your vocabulary further with LangBlitz
Our English vocabulary app: FSRS spaced repetition, 5,000+ curated words across 119 topic groups, CEFR A1 to C2. Explore your mastery with the beautiful Vocabulary World feature.