as in to stain
to make dirty
she accidentally smudged her collar with the lipstick
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in stain
a mark of guilt or disgrace
the president's spouse must not have the slightest smudge of scandal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of smudge
Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 3 June 2025
The name and number set were also in poor condition and the front sponsor was smudged.
—Elias Burke, New York Times, 1 June 2025
Sally Ventura
june 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
Cabinets and doors, in particular, receive a lot of love with smudges, finger prints, and the like.
—Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for smudge
Verb
Madeline Brewer Madeline Brewer dusted her eyelids amber-colored shadow, smudging the color in below her waterline to create a smoky effect.
—Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 3 June 2025
The name and number set were also in poor condition and the front sponsor was smudged.
—Elias Burke, New York Times, 1 June 2025
Noun
Barbaro had set a small fire in the hallway using a pile of cardboard and, for extra measure, had lit a homemade smoke bomb (some reports refer to it as a smudge pot).
—Sally Ventura
june 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
Cabinets and doors, in particular, receive a lot of love with smudges, finger prints, and the like.
—Patricia Shannon, Southern Living, 22 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for smudge
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smudge
Verb
-
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
-
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
Noun
-
Some argued that, given the presumptive unethical taint of such collections, human remains should be buried or otherwise respectfully disposed of.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
23 June 2025
-
That realization tends to color behavior, and taints the findings.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
17 June 2025
Verb
-
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
-
Crow-Armstrong has dirtied up the White Sox in six of those games, batting .458 with eight RBIs and a homer.—
Kalen Lumpkins,
Chicago Tribune,
27 June 2025
Noun
-
Wipe the area with a cloth dampened with cold water, then blot with a fresh sponge.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 July 2025
-
This blot on our state suggests the need for a constitutional amendment to make the office safely independent of the governor.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 June 2025
Verb
-
Leaves and buds that are bitten by frost will blacken and shrivel, sometimes all over the plant.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
23 July 2025
-
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
Cite this Entry
“Smudge.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smudge. Accessed 4 Aug. 2025.
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