libel

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈlaɪbəl/^[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English libel (“written declaration”),^[2][3] borrowed from Old French libel, libelle,^{[2][4][5][3][6]} from Latin libellus (“little book, pamphlet; petition, written accusation”),^{[2][4][5][3][6][7]} a diminutive of liber “book” (see library).^{[2][4][5][3][6][7]}

Earliest recorded meaning

A formal written statement or document (1297 in the OED; about 1300 in Barnhart and Etymonline).^[8][4][5][7]

Semantic evolution

In civil and ecclesiastical law a libel was the plaintiff's written statement of charges (1340).^[4][5][8] The word also meant a little book (1382)^[8][4] and a handbill or pamphlet publicly circulated, especially one attacking someone's character (1521).^[8][4][3] From this came the modern sense, a published false statement damaging to a person's reputation, which dates from the early 17th century.^[5][7][6] In law libel, which is written or published, contrasts with slander, which is spoken.^[7][9] The verb meant first to set out a plaintiff's case (mid-15th century),^[5] then to make defamatory statements (1570) and to defame (1601).^[8][4][5]

Timeline

• 1297 – a formal written declaration.^[8]
• 1340 – a plaintiff's statement of charges.^[8][4]
• 1382 – a little book.^[8][4]
• 1521 – a defamatory pamphlet.^[8][4]
• 1570 – verb, to defame.^[8][4]
• 1610s – a false, defamatory statement.^[5]
• 1619 – libellous.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. (law) A false statement published in writing, print, pictures or any form other than speech that damages a person's reputation; the act or crime of publishing it.
2. Anything that maliciously or damagingly misrepresents.
3. (law) The written claims of a plaintiff in an admiralty or ecclesiastical court.

Verb

1. To publish a libel against; to defame in writing or pictures.
2. (law) To bring suit against a ship or cargo in an admiralty court.

Word family

• libeler
• libelist
• libelous
• libelant
• libelee
• unlibelled

Related words

• library
• libretto
• slander
• defamation
• label

References

1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
6. ^ a b c d Hoad, T. F., ed. (1986), The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, Oxford: Clarendon Press
7. ^ a b c d e Cresswell, Julia (2021), Oxford Dictionary of Word Origins, 3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press
8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
9. ^ Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House