calumniate

English

WOTD – 16 February 2007    

Etymology

From Latin calumniātus, perfect active participle of calumnior (“I accuse falsely”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /kəˈlʌmni.eɪt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Verb

calumniate (third-person singular simple present calumniates, present participle calumniating, simple past and past participle calumniated)

1. To make hurtful untrue comments about (someone)
   • 1905, Robert Louis Stevenson, Travels with a Donkey in the Cevennes, chapter 1

     There are adherents of each of the four French parties—Legitimists, Orleanists, Imperialists, and Republicans—in this little mountain-town; and they all hate, loathe, decry, and calumniate each other.

Synonyms

• (to make hurtful untrue statements): slander
• See also Wikisaurus:defame

Translations

to make hurtful untrue statements

• Chinese:

  Simplified: 诽谤

  Traditional: 誹謗

  Pinyin: feibang

• Finnish: mustamaalata (fi)
• French: calomnier (fr)
• German: verleumden
• Italian: calunniare (it)
• Japanese:

  kanji: 中傷する

  hiragana: ちゅうしょうする

  romaji: chūshō suru

• Korean:

  hangul: 비방한 위하여

  romaja: bibanghan wihayeo

• Latin: calumnior (la)
• Polish: rzucać kalumnie, oczerniać
• Russian: оклеветать (ru) (oklevetat')
• Spanish: calumniar (es)
• Swedish: förtala, smutskasta

Related terms

• calumniation
• calumniator
• calumniatory
• calumnious
• calumny

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Latin

Participle

calumniāte

1. vocative masculine singular of calumniātus