(v. t.) To smirch or soil; to discolor; to obscure. Hence: To dishonor; to sully.
Example Sentences:
(1) An attempt by George Osborne to besmirch the reputation of Ed Balls by linking him directly to the Libor-fixing scandal lay in tatters on Monday night after the Bank of England cleared the shadow chancellor .
(2) The two further charges allege that he lied in September 2012, after the publication of the Hillsborough independent panel report, when he issued press releases saying he had never suggested Liverpool supporters’ behaviour caused the disaster, and had never “besmirched” supporters.
(3) He accused McCain and Graham of besmirching Rice and that her statements about Benghazi had been made with the backing of the White House.
(4) "I'm not willing to let my father's good name be besmirched and undermined in the way that the Daily Mail are doing.
(5) The ongoing orchestrated effort by the Abbott government to besmirch Professor Triggs is a shameful attempt to divert attention away from the important findings and recommendations in her report,” Marles said in a statement.
(6) Impatient with criticism from Jewish leaders, a Jobbik MEP, Krisztina Morvai, said she'd prefer "those who call themselves proud Hungarian Jews played in their leisure with their tiny circumcised dicks, instead of besmirching me".
(7) As a fugitive paedophile, Polanski had no good name to besmirch, particularly when the alleged besmirching consisted of the accusation that he was a groper.
(8) The Labour leader said the newspaper had overstepped the boundaries of civilised debate by deliberately "besmirching and undermining" his father, a Marxist academic who died in 1994.
(9) This American import has not only besmirched the concept of welfare, but also displaced the term "social security".
(10) To those who have discarded all principles, save that of profit before all else; to those who have turned their backs on the very idea of a truly democratic society, and aligned themselves to nothing but self-interest; to those who have betrayed the vision of equality, and justice, and compassion for all – that vision that provided the crucible from which came forth the National Health Service – I say to you, as Aneurin Bevan said in Trafalgar Square in 1956: you have besmirched the name of Britain; you have made us ashamed of the things of which formerly we were proud; you have offended against every principle of decency and there is only way in which you can even begin to restore your tarnished reputation.
(11) It couldn't be farther from the current image of Allen as a besieged and besmirched individual.
(12) The video has emerged as the defence minister, David Johnston, pushes for an inquiry into the ABC for “besmirching” the navy’s reputation.
(13) While he will now become deputy prime minister by virtue of being the crown prince, there is little in his record to suggest new thinking on the human and civil rights failings, including women’s rights and capital punishment, that continue to besmirch the country’s reputation.
(14) I felt a sudden, instinctive lurch – the thought of my phiz besmirching every hairdresser's salon and dentist's waiting room.
(15) A long exposure on Channel 4 news with the Ukip donor, Demetri Marchessini sought to besmirch the party with guilt by association.
(16) More to the point, libel is meant to protect men and women of good character from having their reputations besmirched.
(17) If you do anything, don’t besmirch the good hearts and the good values of the tens of thousands, the millions of Donald Trump supporters.” Arizona voting She clarified that she did not condone the Phoenix supporter’s language: “I think what he had to say was disgusting.” Trump has blamed “the dishonest media”, sometimes singling out reporters by name, for his recent collapse in the polls, and reporters have been subjected to jeers and even threats .
(18) Britain's ambassador reiterated the point that "peaceful activists do not have the means … to shoot down Ukrainian military helicopters," and France's ambassador asked "What right do we have to interfere in affairs of besmirched state trying to recover its sovereignty?"
(19) Conversely, the part-time mammographer, although not necessarily besmirching his professional competence, will tend to give the examination a bad reputation by unnecessary hedges and reporting uncertainties characterized by long winded reports.
(20) An attack, let’s not forget, that appears to have no qualms about drawing attention to itself … but carelessly forgets to use the opportunity to praise North Korea’s supreme leader or call for the movie besmirching his image to be withdrawn.” There are further inconsistencies with previous North Korean hacking attempts.
Defame
Definition:
(v. t.) To harm or destroy the good fame or reputation of; to disgrace; especially, to speak evil of maliciously; to dishonor by slanderous reports; to calumniate; to asperse.
(v. t.) To render infamous; to bring into disrepute.
(v. t.) To charge; to accuse.
(n.) Dishonor.
Example Sentences:
(1) Abe Foxman, director of the Anti-Defamation League, a vigorous defender of Israel, called the speech “ill-advised”.
(2) Equally, Whittingdale pointed out that the Irish defamation act 2009 allows the courts to take account of whether a journalist has adhered to the Irish Press Council's code.
(3) They have denied the allegations and have filed a criminal complaint accusing the magazine of defamation.
(4) Her parents, Apiruj and Wanthanee Suwadee, were found guilty of violating Article 112 of Thailand’s criminal code which says anyone who “defames, insults or threatens the king, the queen, the heir-apparent or the regent” will be punished with up to 15 years in prison.
(5) They may be considered blasphemous by some, but banning speech based on criticism or so-called defamation of religion is incompatible with international human rights standards.
(6) Polonsky is hoping to sue Lebedev for libel and is seeking damages for defamation, his lawyer Andrew Stephenson has said.
(7) "The government has already published consultations on multiple publications on the internet and controlling costs in defamation."
(8) Tugendhat also stated that "in the language of defamation, the information would be capable of lowering [Terry] in the estimation of right-thinking members of society generally".
(9) According to the New York Times , he told its reporter Emily Steel that if he did not approve of her resulting article “I’m coming after you with everything I have,” adding: “You can take it as a threat.” The 65-year-old anchor – who earlier dismissed the Mother Jones article as “total bullshit”, “disgusting”, “defamation” and “a piece of garbage” – had promised that the archive tapes would comprehensively disprove the charges against him.
(10) The comedian has been fined several times for defamation, using insulting language, hate speech and racial discrimination.
(11) "When I complained to the police and law enforcement of Somalia, they arrested me and defamed me.
(12) These include Atena Farghadani, 28, an artist who was placed in solitary confinement in Iran for posting a cartoon on Facebook criticising a government bill to limit family planning services, and Gladys Lanza , who was convicted of defamation in Honduras when she spoke in defence of a woman who had accused a government official of sexual harassment.
(13) Ferrero: “I meant no disrespect to Mr Thohir, Inter’s directors or the people of the Philippines – with whom I have a wonderful rapport.” Legal news Croatia: Dinamo Zagreb president Zdravko Mamic fined €17,000 for defaming lawyer Ivica Crnic during a 2013 tribunal.
(14) "It is almost as dangerous to be an ABT member as it is to encounter one," the Anti-Defamation League study says.
(15) In fact, this has been all about defamation and manipulation of history, not prosecution.
(16) They are also likely to consider amendments that would boost fines for defamation.
(17) Thanks to sifting by the Defamer blog , the emails reveal the arguments began back in February, after Angelina Jolie wanted Fincher to direct her in Cleopatra, rather than take on the Jobs film.
(18) Foreign officials Mossack Fonseca appears to still act for Hunt’s company, despite a high-profile libel case in which the high court threw out Hunt’s defamation suit against the Sunday Times.
(19) In Bangladesh, defaming a religion on the internet can carry a 10-year jail sentence.
(20) For the sake of clarity it is worth pointing out that "the rich" Lord Lester is referring to are the rich who complain of being defamed, not the rich newspaper proprietors.