libel
• noun 1 Law the publication of a false statement that is damaging to a person’s reputation. Compare with SLANDER. 2 a written defamation. • verb (libelled, libelling; US libeled, libeling) Law defame by publishing a libel. — DERIVATIVES libellous (US also libelous) adjective. — ORIGIN originally denoting a document: from Latin libellus ‘little book’.
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