as in to stain
to make dirty
inconsiderately besmirched the carpet with their dirty feet
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Recent Examples of besmirch
With her buzz cut and Bikini Kill T-shirt, Brie Larson’s Elektra is presented as a rebel, a provocateur, and the kind of obsessively angry soul who might well carry her microphone around town in order to besmirch her mother and berate the world.
—
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Feb. 2025
Images illustrating the reality versus carefully edited Instagram selfies have somewhat besmirched Santorini’s romantic reputation of late.
—Helen Iatrou, AFAR Media, 16 Dec. 2024
There’s a new promo picture going around showing a Dusty Milligan with facial hair (see: above) — and listen, not to besmirch his infinity-pool jawline, but the dude looks so much better with that scruff.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 8 Nov. 2024
The Jefferson Council, a conservative alumni group, had been calling for an end or change to the tour program, insisting that volunteers had been wrongly besmirching the legacy of UVA's founder.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 30 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for besmirch
David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Feb. 2025
Images illustrating the reality versus carefully edited Instagram selfies have somewhat besmirched Santorini’s romantic reputation of late.
—Helen Iatrou, AFAR Media, 16 Dec. 2024
There’s a new promo picture going around showing a Dusty Milligan with facial hair (see: above) — and listen, not to besmirch his infinity-pool jawline, but the dude looks so much better with that scruff.
—Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 8 Nov. 2024
The Jefferson Council, a conservative alumni group, had been calling for an end or change to the tour program, insisting that volunteers had been wrongly besmirching the legacy of UVA's founder.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 30 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for besmirch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for besmirch
Verb
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However, the damage was done, thanks to the anchoring bias where the news broke, it was already stained in people’s memory.—
Pamela N. Danziger,
Forbes.com,
22 July 2025
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It was stained in several places, disintegrating around the edges, and already yellowing due to years of exposure to air and sunlight and, quite possibly, pipe tobacco.—
Darcy Ballantyne
July 16,
Literary Hub,
16 July 2025
Verb
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Leaves and buds that are bitten by frost will blacken and shrivel, sometimes all over the plant.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
23 July 2025
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Let skins blister and blacken, while turning peppers with tongs, until they’re evenly blackened, about 5 minutes.—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
Denver Post,
22 July 2025
Verb
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As more success suddenly comes his way, McKinstry has remained the same, friendly and chuckling at his locker, dirtying his jersey and pestering opponents on the field.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
10 July 2025
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Some were prosthetic buttocks, but others were people’s own buttocks, but in various states, like dirtied down and with partial covering.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
1 July 2025
Verb
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Boeing had already been reeling from two deadly Max crashes in 2018 and 2019 that sullied the reputation of America's largest exporter.—
Leslie Josephs,
CNBC,
27 July 2025
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Tens of thousands of people have been sickened by the pollution, which also sullies the air when the water aerosolizes as sea spray.—
Joe Mathews,
Mercury News,
16 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Besmirch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besmirch. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
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