诽谤

• Pinyin: fěi bàng
• Hanzi breakdown: 诽 = 讠 + 非 (speech + negation/wrong — to speak wrongly of someone); 谤 = 讠+ 旁 (speech + side — to speak ill of someone behind their back)

Meaning

To defame; to slander; to libel. To make false and damaging statements about someone with the intent to harm their reputation.

A legal and formal term covering both spoken defamation (slander) and written defamation (libel). Used in legal proceedings, journalism, and serious interpersonal disputes. Related: 名誉权 (right to reputation), 诽谤罪 (criminal defamation), 侵权 (infringement of rights).

Examples

1. 被告在多个公开社交媒体账号上捏造并散布关于原告存在学术造假行为的不实信息，已构成对其名誉权的严重侵害，被法院认定为诽谤行为。 The defendant fabricated and spread false claims on multiple public social media accounts alleging that the plaintiff had committed academic fraud, seriously infringing on the plaintiff’s right to reputation. The court ruled it constituted defamation.
2. 在网络舆论环境中，匿名诽谤的成本极低而受害者维权的难度极高，这一不对称格局已促使多国立法机构着手完善针对网络诽谤的专项法律规制。 In the online public opinion environment, anonymous defamation is very cheap while victims face great difficulty seeking legal remedy. This imbalance has pushed legislatures in many countries to strengthen laws specifically targeting online defamation.
3. 他委托律师向对方发出律师函，明确警告若不立即删除相关诽谤内容并公开致歉，将依法提起包括民事索赔在内的全套法律追责程序。 He had his lawyer send a formal legal notice, clearly warning that if the other party did not immediately delete the defamatory content and issue a public apology, he would pursue full legal action, including a civil damages claim.

Usage Guide

Context: law, media, politics, social media

Tone: negative

Do Say

• 该媒体未经核实就发文指控这位企业家涉嫌欺诈，事后被认定严重失实，法院裁定构成诽谤。(The media outlet published accusations against the entrepreneur without verification; the report was later found to be seriously false, and the court ruled that it constituted defamation.)
• 在学术界，蓄意捏造同行的研究数据或动机并加以公开散布的行为，不仅违反职业伦理规范，在情节严重时还可能触犯诽谤相关法律条款。(In academia, the deliberate fabrication and public dissemination of a peer's research data or motivations not only violates professional ethical standards but may also, in serious cases, violate legal provisions related to defamation.)

Don't Say

• 诽谤 for expressing a strongly negative but truthful opinion — truth is a complete defence against defamation; do not confuse 诽谤 with 批评 (criticism) or 指控 (accusation); 诽谤 specifically requires falsehood and intent to harm

Origin & History

诽 (to slander; to speak ill of behind one's back) + 谤 (to defame; to spread false accusations) — both characters relate to malicious false speech

Cultural Context

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal