Real Dictionary

libel
variable noun: Libel is a written statement which wrongly accuses someone of something, and which is therefore against the law. Compare slander.
verb: To libel someone means to write or print something in a book, newspaper, or magazine which wrongly damages that person's reputation and is therefore against the law.

libel in American English
any false and malicious written or printed statement, or any sign, picture, or effigy, tending to expose a person to public ridicule, hatred, or contempt or to injure a person's reputation in any way
to publish or make a libel against
noun: defamation by written or printed words, pictures, or in any form other than by spoken words or gestures
transitive verb: to publish a libel against

libel in British English
noun: the publication of defamatory matter in permanent form, as by a written or printed statement, picture, etc
verb: to make or publish a defamatory statement or representation about (a person)