calumniate

English

WOTD – 16 February 2007

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kəˈlʌmni.eɪt/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Verb

1. (transitive) To make hurtful untrue comments about.
   • Strype

     Hatred unto the truth did always falsely report and calumniate all godly men's doings.

   • 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.

2. (transitive) To levy a false charge against, especially of a vague offense, with the intent to damage someone's reputation or standing.

Synonyms

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

Related terms

• calumniation
• calumniator
• calumniatory
• calumnious
• calumny

Translations

to make hurtful untrue statements

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 誹謗／诽谤 (zh) (fěibàng), 诽谤 (zh) (fěibàng)

• Esperanto: kalumnii
• Finnish: mustamaalata (fi)
• French: calomnier (fr)
• German: verleumden (de)
• Hungarian: rágalmaz (hu), megrágalmaz (hu)
• Italian: calunniare (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Japanese: 中傷する (ja) (ちゅうしょうする, chūshō suru)
• Korean: 비방한 위하여 (bibanghan wihayeo)
• Latin: calumnior
• Lithuanian: apšmeižti, šmeižti
• Polish: rzucać kalumnie, oczerniać (pl)
• Portuguese: caluniar (pt)
• Russian: оклеветать (ru) (oklevetatʹ)
• Spanish: calumniar (es)
• Swedish: förtala (sv), smutskasta (sv)

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Latin

Participle

(deprecated template usage) calumniāte

1. vocative masculine singular of calumniātus