δυσφημία

The Greek word δυσφημία (dusphēmia, Strong's number G1426) refers to speech that causes harm or discredit to someone. Its primary meaning is 'slander', which involves the dissemination of false or malicious information that damages another person's reputation. In terms of its range of usage, δυσφημία is found only once in the Bible, which suggests it is a relatively rare term in ancient Greek. This scarcity might imply that the word was not commonly used in everyday conversation, but rather reserved for specific contexts where malicious speech was particularly egregious. Despite its limited occurrences, δυσφημία holds significant value as a term that conveys the harm caused by untruthful words, often spoken with the intention of damaging another person's character or reputation.