besmirch
/bɪˈsməːtʃ
/verb [with object]
1Damage (someone’s reputation): he had besmirched the good name of his family...
- The case has shown how easy it is for a hard-working and respected professional to have their name and reputation besmirched by one wild accusation.
- That would be truly despicable of the Senate to allow his reputation to be permanently besmirched.
- At no stage did any of these worthies think it necessary to do some fact-checking before besmirching the reputation of a former cabinet officer.
Synonyms
sully, tarnish, blacken, drag through the mud/mire, stain, taint, smear, befoul, soil, contaminate, pollute, disgrace, dishonour, bring discredit to, stigmatize, injure, damage, debase, spoil, ruin;
slander, defame
literary smirch, besmear
archaic breathe on, spot
2 literary Make (something) dirty or discoloured: the ground was besmirched with blood...
- He should be besmirched with smoke, grime, and the most rancid of grease.
- His body was bruised, his hands were bleeding, and his rags were all besmirched with mud.
- The insensitive Jane firmly replied that she had no use for a husband with a flat head, a half-naked body and copper-colored skin besmirched with whale oil."
Rhymes
- black sapote
- Black Sash
- Black Saturday
- Blacksburg
- black scab
- black scale
- Black-Scholes
- black scour
- black scurf
- Black Sea
- black section
- Black September
- black shale
- black sheep
- black sheet
- blackshirt
- black-shirted
- black shoe
- black-sick
- black silicon
- black singlet
- black slug
- black smallpox
- blacksmith
- blacksmithery