Aspersion

“Aspersion (noun): A disparaging or slanderous comment, report, or expression; calumny; slur; Adj. aspersive; v. asperse.

‘But whatever the fact here, the Americans were quickly aware of every British aspersion on their culture, whether in a book or in one of the reviews.’ H.L. Mencken, The American Language”

Excerpted from: Grambs, David. The Random House Dictionary for Writers and Readers. New York: Random House, 1990.