slander n
1. words falsely spoken that damage the reputation of another
2. an abusive attack on a person's character or good name [syn: aspersion, calumny, defamation, denigration] v : charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone; "The journalists have defamed me!" "The article in the paper sullied my reputation" [syn: defame, smirch, asperse, denigrate, calumniate, smear, sully, besmirch]

Slander \Slan"der\, n. [OE. sclandere, OF. esclandre, esclandle, escandre, F. esclandre, fr. L. scandalum, Gr. ??? a snare, stumbling block, offense, scandal; probably originally, the spring of a trap, and akin to Skr. skand to spring, leap. See Scan, and cf. Scandal.]
1. A false tale or report maliciously uttered, tending to injure the reputation of another; the malicious utterance of defamatory reports; the dissemination of malicious tales or suggestions to the injury of another. Whether we speak evil of a man to his face or behind his back; the former way, indeed, seems to be the most generous, but yet is a great fault, and that which we call ``reviling;'' the latter is more mean and base, and that which we properly call ``slander'', or ``Backbiting.'' --Tillotson. [We] make the careful magistrate The mark of slander. --B. Jonson.

Slander \Slan"der\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Slandered; p. pr. & vb. n. Slandering.]
1. To defame; to injure by maliciously uttering a false report; to tarnish or impair the reputation of by false tales maliciously told or propagated; to calumniate.

Defamation is saying or writing something about another person that hurts their reputation. Usually, when people use the word defamation, it means that the statement is not true. In this case, it is against the law. A statement that is defamation is called defamatory.

In order to be defamatory, a statement has to claim to be a fact instead of an opinion. For example, saying, "Mr. Jones is mean" cannot be defamatory, because it is someone's opinion. However, if someone says, "Mr. Jones steals candy from children", then the statement is defamatory if it is not true, because it would be a fact, not an opinion.

If a defamatory statement is written, such as in a book or in a newspaper, it is called libel. If it is spoken out loud, it is called slander. Somebody who is the victim of defamation can sue the person who wrote or said it.

• Swedish teens charged with slander for 'slut-shaming' on Instagram
  GOTHENBURG, Sweden, May 21 (UPI) -- Two teenage girls in Sweden were charged Tuesday with participating in an Instagram account that encouraged "slut-shaming." Read more on this news related to 'Slander'
• Swedish teens charged with slander for 'slut-shaming' on Instragram
  GOTHENBURG, Sweden, May 21 (UPI) -- Two teenage girls in Sweden were charged Tuesday with participating in an Instagram account that encouraged "slut-shaming." Read more on this news related to 'Slander'
• Azerbaijan passes controversial Internet 'slander' law
  Azerbaijan on Tuesday legalised tighter Internet controls in a move critics worry could be used to curb online dissent in the tightly-managed former Soviet state. Read more on this news related to 'Slander'