n. & v.
--n.
1. a malicious, false, and injurious statement spoken about a person.
2 the uttering of such statements; calumny.
3 Law false oral defamation (cf. LIBEL).
--v.tr. utter slander about; defame falsely.
Derivatives:
slanderer n. slanderous adj. slanderously adv.
Etymology: ME sclaundre f. AF esclaundre, OF esclandre alt. f. escandle f. LL scandalum: see SCANDAL