variants
or libellous
as in erroneous
causing or intended to cause unjust injury to a person's good name
libelous statements about a celebrity for which the tabloid was sued
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of libelous
And in this age of clickbait journalism, even those members of the legacy media have resorted to libelous headlines and false reports to generate views.
—
Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 24 Mar. 2025
In Britain, Musk has called for the release of Tommy Robinson, a far-right extremist who was jailed for 18 months in October for repeating a libelous claim about a Syrian refugee schoolboy attacking girls.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 7 Jan. 2025
These are false, libelous claims.
—Brenton Blanchet, People.com, 4 Oct. 2024
Some typical British editor got scared because everything is potentially libelous.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for libelous
Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 24 Mar. 2025
In Britain, Musk has called for the release of Tommy Robinson, a far-right extremist who was jailed for 18 months in October for repeating a libelous claim about a Syrian refugee schoolboy attacking girls.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 7 Jan. 2025
These are false, libelous claims.
—Brenton Blanchet, People.com, 4 Oct. 2024
Some typical British editor got scared because everything is potentially libelous.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
See All Example Sentences for libelous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for libelous
Adjective
-
Congress foolishly downsized that number in the 1980s and ’90s on the erroneous belief that more doctors would encourage unnecessary health care consumption.—
Betsy McCaughey,
Boston Herald,
8 Feb. 2026
-
Civilians misidentified as undercover officers have been chased by anti-ICE mobs in public, even while the victims were going about their daily lives, based on erroneous reporting from fellow ICE monitors.—
Mia Cathell,
The Washington Examiner,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Defendant Metcalf provided false information to Defendant Johnson about what Plaintiff Kennedy allegedly said, thereby instigating and authorizing the publication of the defamatory and reckless statements, which were intended to harm Plaintiff Kennedy.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
4 Feb. 2026
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The court upheld the wrongful termination verdict but found the prosecutor failed to specify which statements were defamatory.—
Taylor Seely,
AZCentral.com,
17 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Keefer called these claims baseless and slanderous.—
Bradley Hohulin,
IndyStar,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Some will always believe their placement incorrect.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
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Both parties claim problems such as invalid signatures and missing or incorrect voter information on petitions that judicial candidates submit to secure a place on the ballot.—
Kamal Morgan,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Lewinsky would later have a scandalous affair with Bill Clinton, who was impeached for lying about it.—
Jonathan Zimmerman,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
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Although some House members use their position to develop expertise, legislate, or conduct oversight, the bare minimum for the job in both parties has always been to show up and vote the way the party leadership tells you, and refrain from saying or doing anything scandalous.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Authorities did not provide additional details about the agents' apparently false statements.—
Nicole Acevedo,
NBC news,
13 Feb. 2026
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Nevertheless, Worden continued to promote the false claim to news outlets and hired a media consultant to amplify it, the documents said.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Libelous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/libelous. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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