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An intentional tort is characterized as a wrongful act performed with the intent to cause harm or damage to another individual. This means that the person committing the tort has a specific purpose or desire to bring about the harmful outcome, or at least knows that such an outcome is substantially certain to occur as a result of their actions. The scope of intentional torts includes various types of behavior such as assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and trespass, among others.

In contrast, unintentional acts, which lead to unforeseen consequences, pertain to negligence, where harm is caused without intent. A breach of contract without malicious intent does not involve tort law but rather contract law, addressing obligations and agreements rather than harmful acts. Lastly, while defamation is indeed classified under tort law, it does not encompass all aspects of intentional torts but rather focuses on harming a person's reputation through false statements. Therefore, the broad definition of an intentional tort is best captured by the idea of willfully causing harm.