The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Criticism \Crit"i*cism\ (kr?t"?-s?z'm), n.
   1. The rules and principles which regulate the practice of
      the critic; the art of judging with knowledge and
      propriety of the beauties and faults of a literary
      performance, or of a production in the fine arts; as,
      dramatic criticism.
      [1913 Webster]

            The elements ofcriticism depend on the two
            principles of Beauty and Truth, one of which is the
            final end or object of study in every one of its
            pursuits: Beauty, in letters and the arts; Truth, in
            history and sciences.                 --Brande & C.
      [1913 Webster]

            By criticism, as it was first instituted by
            Aristotle, was meant a standard of judging well.
                                                  --Dryden.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. The act of criticising; a critical judgment passed or
      expressed; a critical observation or detailed examination
      and review; a critique; animadversion; censure.
      [1913 Webster]

            About the plan of "Rasselas" little was said by the
            critics; and yet the faults of the plan might seem
            to invite severe criticism.           --Macaulay.
      [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

criticism
    n 1: disapproval expressed by pointing out faults or
         shortcomings; "the senator received severe criticism from
         his opponent" [syn: criticism, unfavorable judgment]
    2: a serious examination and judgment of something;
       "constructive criticism is always appreciated" [syn:
       criticism, critique]
    3: a written evaluation of a work of literature [syn:
       criticism, literary criticism]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

99 Moby Thesaurus words for "criticism":
   adverse criticism, analysis, animadversion, appraisal, approval,
   aspersion, assessment, bad notices, bad press, book review,
   captiousness, carping, cavil, caviling, censoriousness, censure,
   comment, commentary, commentation, condemnation,
   critical bibliography, critical journal, critical notice,
   critical review, critique, cryptanalysis, cryptography, cryptology,
   diagnostics, disapproval, disparagement, editorial, epigraphy,
   estimate, estimation, evaluation, examination, exception,
   exegetics, faultfinding, flak, gloss, hairsplitting, hermeneutics,
   hit, home thrust, hostile criticism, hypercriticalness,
   hypercriticism, imputation, judgement, knock, leader,
   leading article, lexicography, literary criticism, metoposcopy,
   nagging, niggle, niggling, nit, nit-picking, notice, obloquy,
   observation, oneirology, opinion, overcriticalness, paleography,
   pathognomy, pestering, pettifogging, physiognomics, physiognomy,
   priggishness, quibble, quibbling, rap, rating, reflection, remark,
   renew, report, reproachfulness, review, running commentary,
   semeiology, semeiotics, slam, stricture, study, swipe,
   symptomatology, taking exception, textual criticism,
   trichoschistism, tropology, valuation, write-up



Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

CRITICISM.  The art of judging skillfully of the merits or beauties, defects
or faults of a literary or scientific performance, or of a production of
art; when the criticism is reduced to writing, the writing itself is called
a criticism.
     2. Liberty of criticism must be allowed, or there would be neither
purity of taste nor of morals. Fair discussion, is essentially necessary to,
the truth of history and advancement of science. That publication therefore,
is not a libel, which has for its object, not to injure the reputation of an
individual, but to correct misrepresentations of facts, to refute
sophistical reasoning, to expose a vicious taste for literature, or to
censure what is hostile to morality. Campb. R. 351-2.  As every man who
publishes a book commits himself to the judgment of the public, any one may
comment on his performance.  If the commentator does not step aside from the
work, or introduce fiction for the purpose of condemnation, he exercises a
fair and legitimate right. And the critic does a good service to the public
who writes down any vapid or useless publication such as ought never to have
appeared; and, although the author may suffer a loss from it, the law does
not consider such loss an injury; because it is a loss which the party ought
to sustain. It is the loss of fame and profit, to which he was never
entitled. 1 Campb. R. 358, n. See 1 Esp. N. P. Cas. 28; 2 Stark. Cas. 73; 4
Bing. N. S. 92; S. C. 3 Scott, 340;. 1 M. & M. 44; 1 M. & M. 187; Cooke on
Def. 52.