calumny noun

Objectively, a calumny is a mortal sin when calculated to do serious harm to the person so traduced. Just as in the instance of wrongful damage to person or property, so the calumniator is bound to do adequate reparation for the injury perpetrated by the blackening of another’s good name.

Acts of reparation would be discussed in confession.

This is a new word for my student, and I looked it up to be assured of how to use it in a sentence and as a reminder regarding blog statements.
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Sometimes there is a fine line between calumny and truth. My nana avoided saying anything negative about a person. I’m not my nana, and so I face decisions she sidelined. If a woman was heavy, she would say, “My, isn’t she a big girl?”