stainn.

Brit.

/steɪn/, U.S.

/steɪn/

Forms: Also 1500s–1600s staine, stayne, 1600s steine, steigne.

Etymology: < stain v.

†1. The action of staining; pollution, disgrace.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > [noun]

staining1530

stain1563

besmearing1574

attainture1608

soilurea1616

smutting1621

sullying1629

macula1649

black wash1856

smirching1862

blear1868

smudging1873

1563 B. Googe Eglogs Epytaphes & Sonettes sig. I.iiii^v Vnhappy wretche that wolde, Haue forced the Ladye of this forte with stayne of Royaltie. To haue consented to his wyll, in fylthye Lecherye.

1587 R. Greene Euphues sig. C3^v The staine of the one did ad a disgrace to the glorie of the other.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) v. ii. 58 Giuing our holy Virgins to the staine Of contumelious, beastly..warre.

a. A discoloration produced by absorption of or contact with foreign matter; usually, one that penetrates below the surface and is not easily removable.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > [noun] > stained condition > stain

lita1325

pleckc1350

blotc1400

smodc1400

discolouring?a1425

spot?a1425

stain1583

denigration1641

discolouration1666

staddle1691

discolour1812

spang1839

blotting1842

suddle1861

staddle-stead1868

dabble1871

staddle-mark1876

1583 L. Mascall tr. Profitable Bk. Spottes & Staines 12 A good way to helpe all staynes in thinne silkes and woollen clothe.

1592 Arden of Feversham ii. ii. 113 Seest thou this goare that cleaueth to my face? From hence nere will I wash this bloody staine, Til Ardens hart be panting in my hand.

1597 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet ii. ii. 75 Loe vpon thy cheeke the staine doth sit, Of an old teare that is not washt off yet.

1620 F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Phylaster v. 53 May their false lights..discouer preases, holes, staines, and oldnesse in their stuffes.

1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 53 If by mischance Wine should be shed upon their cloaths, the greatest Drunkard that is, endeavours to get out the stain.

1798 J. Ferriar Illustr. Sterne iii. 57 He should produce the portrait..with all the stains and mouldiness of the last century.

1850 G. Cupples Green Hand 100/2 Rusty stains at her hawse-holes.

1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Man. Brit. Rural Sports i. i. i. §4. 4/2 The coops ought to be moved daily, as the stain of the birds is injurious to them.

1877 ‘Rita’ Vivienne ii. iii I have not even waited to remove the stains and dust of my long journey before coming to see you.

b. A mark or discoloration on the skin; a blotch or sore.

ΘΚΠ

the world > health and disease > ill health > blemish > [noun] > spot or mark

spotOE

markOE

tachea1400

macula?a1425

ruby1542

plotch1548

flea-biting1552

fleck1598

blanch1608

staina1616

naeve1619

neve1624

dark1637

sunspot1651

pip1676

liver spot1684

beauty spot1795

heat-spot1822

spilus1822

ink-spot1839

punctation1848

punctuation1848

macule1864

soldier's spots1874

pock1894

mouche1959

a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. ii. 45 If thou..wert grim Vgly..Full of vnpleasing blots, and sightlesse staines,..Patch'd with foule Moles..I would not care.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) ii. iv. 139 You do remember This staine [sc. a mole] vpon her?

1819 P. B. Shelley Cenci iv. i. 62 Let her food be Poison, untill she be encrusted round With leprous stains!

1845 G. Budd On Dis. Liver 144 This [jaundice] had lessened a good deal, but there was still a light yellow stain of the skin.

1898 J. Hutchinson in Arch. Surg. 9 334 I make him undress, and find him covered on limbs and trunk with blotches and papules and stains.

c. Agriculture. A spot (in an ear of corn) produced by mildew or damp.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > disease or injury > [noun] > type of disease > fungal > associated with trees > discolouration caused by

stain1731

spot1800

sap-stain1910

sap-staining1910

1731 in 6th Rep. Deputy Keeper Public Rec. App. ii. 119 A new Machine for cleaning Wheat..contrived to take away the stains, smut bags, and other trumpery.

d. transferred. A spot or patch of colour different from the ground. Common in Natural History. in fine stain: said of garden flowers with the characteristic markings finely shown.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > variegation > patch of colour > [noun]

patch1557

flame1602

flaming1703

stain1712

flash1972

1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 412. ¶5 Those different Stains of Light that shew themselves in Clouds of a different Situation.

1713 A. Pope Windsor-Forest 7 Swift Trouts, diversify'd with Crimson Stains.

1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 241 Not a flow'r But shows some touch, in freckle, streak, or stain, Of his unrivall'd pencil.

1842 Florist's Jrnl. (1846) 3 130 In the bed were several Claudianas in very fine stain.

1860 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters V. 103 The gathering orange stain upon the edge of yonder western peak.

1890 R. Bridges Larks in Shorter Poems v They In sunlight swim; above the furthest stain Of cloud attain.

†e. figurative. A slight trace or tinge of. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > a small quantity or amount > a slight touch or trace

specec1330

taste1390

lisounc1400

savourc1400

smatcha1500

smell?a1505

spice1531

smack1539

shadow1586

surmise1586

relish1590

tang1593

touch1597

stain1609

tincture1612

dasha1616

soula1616

twanga1640

whiff1644

haut-goût1650

casta1661

stricturea1672

tinge1736

tinct1752

vestige1756

smattering1764

soupçon1766

smutch1776

shade1791

suspicion1809

lineament1811

trait1815

tint1817

trace1827

skiff1839

spicing1844

smudgea1871

ghost1887

1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida i. ii. 25 There is no man hath a vertue, that he hath not a glimpse of, nor any man an attaint, but he carries some staine of it.

a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) i. i. 110 You haue some staine of souldier in you.

f. Hunting. = foil n.⁴ (Cf. stain v. 4d.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > thing hunted or game > [noun] > track

righta1425

view?1516

persue1530

abature1575

blemish1575

foil1575

marks1575

entry1627

gate1677

file1815

stain1832

1832 Q. Rev. 47 238 A short check from the stain of sheep makes everything comfortable; and the Squire having hit off his fox like a workman, thirteen men [etc.].

3. figurative. (Often in phrases like to wash a stain, purge a stain.)

a. A morally defiling effect on the character or conscience; a grave blemish on a person's reputation; a mark of infamy or disgrace, a stigma.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > [noun] > a stain or slur

spota1225

umberc1380

blotc1386

maculate1490

touch1508

blemish1526

blur1548

attaint1592

stain1594

attainder1597

tachec1610

sullya1616

tainta1616

smutch1648

slur1662

woad1663

a blot on an escutcheon1697

blotch1860

smear1943

1594 W. Shakespeare Lucrece sig. M1^v How may this forced staine be wip'd from me?

1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence Phormio v. ii, in Terence in Eng. 437 Studying to avoid the staine of niggardlines.

1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 525 A right ancient race of the Digbyes: which..hath now caught a deepe steine by Sir Euerard Digby drawen into that cursed crew.

c1610–15 Life St. Sexburge in C. Horstmann Lives Women Saints (1886) 55 Washing away the staynes of secular pleasures with flouds of teares.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iv. v. 42 Thy Fathers charge shal cleare thee from y^t staine.

1640 T. Nabbes Unfortunate Mother iv. sig. G A truth cleere as the innocence Of babes: after the holy ceremony Hath purg'd th' originall staine.

1645 J. Milton Il Penseroso in Poems 38 His daughter she (in Saturns raign, Such mixture was not held a stain).

1781 W. Cowper Expostulation 74 Till penitence had purg'd the public stain.

1801 M. Edgeworth Prussian Vase in Moral Tales III. 36 No stain affixes to his honour from the accusation.

1838 G. P. R. James Robber I. v. 89 He would never speak so boldly and so tenderly of his mother, if there were any stain upon her name.

1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest (1876) IV. xviii. 143 The probable stain on their birth could hardly be thrown in their teeth in the days of William the bastard.

1882 J. H. Blunt Reformation Church of Eng. II. 484 But the stain of blood could not be washed out.

b. A person or thing that causes disgrace. Now rare or Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > [noun] > source of discredit or discrediting circumstance > person or thing causing discredit

villainya1382

reproof?c1436

reproach1581

stain1589

1589 T. Nashe Anat. Absurditie sig. Biiii^v To send them to some other mechanicall Arte, that they might not thus be the staine of Arte.

1598 S. Brandon Tragicomoedi of Vertuous Octauia ii. C 5 Stain of thy sexe, thy poisoned speech surcease.

1602 W. Fulbecke Pandectes vi. f. 31^v Antiphon that vicious varlet, and steigne of Athens.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iv. i. 45 Staine to thy Countrymen, thou hear'st thy doom.

1649 W. Davenant Love & Honour iii. ii. 85 Hence from my sight, Thou birth ill gotten, and my marriage stain.

1726 W. Broome in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey IV. xviii. 4 A surly vagrant.., The stain of manhood.

†c. One who eclipses or casts into the shade.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > outdoing or surpassing > [noun] > one who or that which > one who

staina1586

exceeder1625

eclipser1748

surpasser1805

outdoer1824

outshiner1864

overtaker1885

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. xiv. sig. I8^v Hereby I will..lead her, that is the prayse, and yet the staine of all womankinde.

1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. B Staine to all Nimphs, more louely then a man.

1605 W. Alexander Alexandræan Trag. iii. ii My sonne that was the glorie of his time, Staine of times past, and light of times to come.

†4. Heraldry. (See quot. 1586; and see stainand adj.). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > [noun] > heraldic tincture

colourc1475

stain1586

society > communication > indication > insignia > heraldic devices collective > heraldic tincture > [noun] > colour > stain

stain1586

1586 J. Ferne Blazon of Gentrie i. 163 Notwithstanding I do with the french men, condemne the two last colours: that is to say, Tawney and sanguine, as no colours. But we will vouchsafe, to haue them called staines.

5. Glass-painting. (See quot. 1832¹.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > colouring for glass

stain1832

mat1881

colour1914

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [noun] > glass-colouring > glass-painting > layer of colour

stain1832

mat1881

1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 298 There are only three colours..which can be floated on, and which are called stains to distinguish them from others which must be laid on by the strokes of a brush. These stains are orange, red, and lemon-yellow.

1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 298 Orange stain... In floating this stain upon the glass, a large camel-hair pencil..must be used.

1838 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 1 156/1 The stains are then put in, with the lights and shadows in enamel, and again passed through the fire.

6. A dye or colouring matter used in staining.

a. A liquid preparation used to colour wood, etc., differing from paint in being thinner, and in being absorbed into the pores of the material instead of forming a coating. (See also quot. 1880².)

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > stain

staining1541

stain1758

water stain1830

1758 R. Dossie Handmaid to Arts 435 A bright red stain for wood.

1875 E. A. Davidson House-painting 364 The stain is to be applied with a sponge or large brush.

1880 R. V. Tuson Cooley's Cycl. Pract. Receipts (ed. 6) II. 1552 Stains, Confectioner's.

1880 R. V. Tuson Cooley's Cycl. Pract. Receipts (ed. 6) II. 1552 These stains are also used for cakes and pastry.

1895 E. Rowe Hints on Chip-carving 73 Should a very large quantity of the stain be required it would be cheaper to purchase the colours in powders.

1895 E. Rowe Hints on Chip-carving 74 French polish must be used for oil-stains, but for water-stains..wax and turpentine are simpler.

b. A dye or pigment used to render minute and transparent structures visible, or to differentiate tissue elements by colouring, for microscopic observations; or to produce specific microchemical reactions.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > biology > laboratory analysis > material > [noun] > staining material

osmium tetroxide1869

picrocarmine1872

rose bengal1878

stain1880

erythrosin1884

Gram stain1884

vesuvin1885

Nile blue1888

pyronin1895

Janus green1898

counterstain1899

Nissl stain1899

Leishman stain1904

trypan blue1911

quinacrine mustard1957

the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > stain > for microscopy

stain1880

crystal violet1966

1880 Gibbes Histol. 23 Some tissues take in the stain very rapidly, others slowly.

1881 W. B. Carpenter Microscope (ed. 6) v. 248 A good blue stain..is also given by the substance termed Indigo-Carmine.

1900–13 W. A. N. Dorland Med. Dict. (ed. 7) 893/2 Anilin blue-black, an anilin dye used as a stain for the study of the central nervous system.

Compounds

C1. General attributive.

stain reaction n.

ΚΠ

1898 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. V. 413 Stain reactions of the blood in diabetes.

stain-spot n.

ΚΠ

a1670 J. Hacket Scrinia Reserata (1693) i. 159 But rip up all his Actions..shew any Stain-Spot in his Fidelity.

stain-bemoaned adj.

ΚΠ

a1711 T. Ken Hymnarium 79 in Wks. (1721) II. Before the Judge enthron'd, Plead my Guilt, self-condemn'd, and stain-bemoan'd.

C2.

† stain-cloth n. Obsolete = stained adj. cloth.

ΘΚΠ

the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > treated or processed in specific way > [noun] > printed

stained cloth1397

stain-cloth1547

print1679

1547 in Archaeologia Cantiana (1874) 9 226 Item rec. of James Lake for a stayne clothe that he bought, xvjd. Item rec. of John Sharpe for iij stayne clothes that he bought, xvjd.

1553–4 in H. J. F. Swayne Churchwardens' Accts. Sarum (1896) 98 Mr. Shorte ffor a stayne cloth iiij^d.

1839 Penny Cycl. XV. 428/2 The effect of it [mosaic] may be obtained, and the beauty of its patterns produced, in stain-cloth flooring.

stain painter n. an exponent of this style.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to medium or technique > [noun] > stain painting > painter

stain painter1965

1965 New Statesman 30 Apr. 693/2 Some of the hard-edge and stain painters are making matters worse by panicking themselves into the optical movement.

stain painting n. a style of painting in which diluted acrylic paints are applied to unsized canvas; a painting executed in this style.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to medium or technique > [noun] > stain painting

stain painting1965

1965 New Statesman 30 Apr. 693/2 The exhibition effects an uneasy marriage between, on the one hand, hard-edge abstraction and stain painting, fields in which the Americans easily excel, and, on the other, optical art.

1974 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 23 Oct. 14/8 Her big canvases..are stain paintings (staining is a technique using acrylics mixed with water, on unsized canvas).

stain-resistance n. resistance to staining.

ΘΚΠ

the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric with specific qualities > [noun] > qualities of

wearing1549

unshrinkability1934

crease-resistance1935

stain-resistance1959

sewability1960

1959 Times 12 Jan. 11/5 For use on wool, cotton, or synthetic fibres to improve oil, grease, and water stain-resistance.

stain-resistant adj.

ΘΚΠ

spot-proof1886

stainless1897

stain-resistant1960

1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 12 Jan. (Suppl.) 3/3 Casual coat by Salbry is in waterproof, stain-resistant Norzon and has a fleecy wool lining.

Draft additions September 2016

stain remover n. a product used to remove stains, usually from a fabric, carpet, etc. Frequently figurative and in figurative contexts; cf. sense 3a. In quot. 1846 as part of an extended metaphor.

ΚΠ

1846 E. B. Lee tr. J. Paul Walt & Vult II. xvi. 130 Such spots upon the reputation, are like the stains of perfumed waters upon handkerchiefs, that would fade of themselves, if left without the aid of..stain-removers.

1925 Woman's World (Chicago) Apr. 68/4 (advt.) Stuart's Stain Remover. Removes ink, iron rust, grass and fruit stains.

1975 Furrow May 287 A theological stain remover to bring up the soul cleaner than you ever thought possible.

2009 S. Andrews Hotel Housek. (ed. 2) xxix. 255 Blood [stain]... Steep in enzyme stain remover.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online March 2022).

stainv.

Brit.

/steɪn/, U.S.

/steɪn/

Forms: Middle English–1500s steyne, Middle English–1500s steyn, stene, 1500s steane, 1500s–1600s stane, 1600s stein; Middle English stenyyn, 1500s Scottish stenȝie, stainyie, steinȝie, steingyie, staingȝe, stinȝie; Middle English–1500s stayne, 1500s staine, 1500s– stain.

Etymology: aphetic < Old French desteign-, desteindre (modern French déteindre ), < des- dis- prefix + teindre to dye: see distain v., which appears in our quots. at the same time as the aphetic form. The verb in French and in the other Romance languages has only its etymological sense ‘to remove the dye from’, intransitive ‘to lose colour, fade, be washed out’. Some of the English senses, both of stain and distain, are difficult to account for; it is possible that in Anglo-Norman the prefix des- in desteindre may sometimes have been taken in the sense ‘diversely, differently’; it is also possible that the verb of French origin may have coalesced with an adoption of Old Norse steina to paint, < stein-n paint, probably identical with steinn stone.

†1.

a. transitive. To deprive of colour. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > lose colour [verb (transitive)] > deprive of colour

distainc1385

undye14..

stain1477

fade1598

discolourize1825

achromatizea1830

decolorize1836

throw?1845

1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 65 Whan his visage is so desteigned.]

1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 55 I haue a seknes & maladye right secrete whiche shal first slee me er my face may be stayned or discoloured.

1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 734/1 I stayne a thynge, I marre the colour, or glosse of it, je destayns.

1589 T. Lodge Scillaes Metamorphosis E 2 b Whereas vermillion hue Is stained in sight.

†b. Of the sun, etc.: To deprive (feebler luminaries) of their lustre. Also figurative of a person or thing: To throw into the shade by superior beauty or excellence; to eclipse. Obsolete. (Very common in the 16th cent.)

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > make dim [verb (transitive)] > render dim by comparison

stain1557

perstringe1603

blind1633

eclipse1810

the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > outdoing or surpassing > outdo or surpass [verb (transitive)] > put in the shade or put to shame

shamec1400

to put down1494

extinguish1551

stain1557

overshadow1581

cloud1582

defacea1592

shend1596

to lay up1601

to shine down1623

dazzle1643

umbrage1647

foila1687

efface1717

eclipse1718

shade?1748

put into the shade1796

to take the shine out of (less frequently from, U.S. off)1819

to put to shame1854

to leave (a person) standing1864

to lay over1869

blanket1884

upstage1921

1557 Earl of Surrey et al. Songes & Sonettes sig. U.ii For here at hande approcheth one: Whose face will staine you all.

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1593) iii. sig. Gg3 O voice that doth, the Thrush in shrilnes staine.

c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxxii. 73 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 91 The Sunne..all lights shall stayne.

1608 E. Topsell Hist. Serpents 94 In largenesse of body and greatnes of his hart..he staineth all the rest.

1610 Histrio-mastix iii. 137 This those excells as farre As glorious Tytan staines a silly Starre.

1613 T. Heywood Brazen Age ii. ii How hath thy valour with thy fortune ioyn'd, To make thee staine the generall fortitude Of all the Princes we deriue from Greece.

1642 T. Fuller Holy State iv. ix. 282 He stains all other mens lives with the clearnesse of his own.

1648 R. Crashaw Steps to Temple (ed. 2) 109 The Son, Whose blush the Moone beauteously marres, And staines the timerous light of starres.

†c. To obscure the lustre of. literal and figurative. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > make dim [verb (transitive)] > deprive of lustre > obscure the lustre of

stain1589

1589 R. Greene Menaphon sig. I4^v Sweete Natures pompe, if my deficient phraze Hath staind thy glories by too little skill, Yeeld pardon.

1594 J. Dickenson Arisbas sig. C A small cloude in a cleare day may somewhat stayne, not wholy stop the Sunnes light.

1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1895) II. 45 O Detestable persounis, quha sa bricht a lycht blew out, stinȝeit sa honorable an ornament!

1622 H. Peacham Compl. Gentleman i. 10 Thirdly, whether Pouertie impeacheth or staineth Nobilitie.

1657 S. Ford in R. Austen Treat. Fruit-trees (ed. 2) ii. sig. ††2 God..is pleased to staine the pride of men.

†2. intransitive. To lose colour or lustre. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > lose colour [verb (intransitive)]

fade13..

to cast coloura1375

staina1387

faint1430

dow1502

discolour1612

dilute1764

decolorize1908

the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > grow dim or lose brightness [verb (intransitive)] > lose lustre

staina1387

tarnish1678

dislustre1890

a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 15 Þe redenesse þerof is wonder fyn and stable, and steyneþ neuere wiþ colde ne with hete.

a1568 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. xlviii. 15 My clayth will nocht stenȝie, Suppois ȝe weit it nycht and day.

1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 25 I finde it nowe for a setled truth,..that the Purple dye will neuer staine, that the pure Cyuet will neuer loose his sauour, [etc.].

1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets xxxiii. sig. C3^v Suns of the world may staine, when heauens sun stainteh [sic] .

1614 T. Gentleman Englands Way to win Wealth 42 Wet and cold can not make them shrinke nor staine, that the North-seas..haue dyed in graine, for such purposes.

a. Of something dyed or coloured: To impart its colour to (something in contact). Also in wider use (e.g. said of a chemical reagent), to alter the colour of (something to which it is applied).[Cf. French déteindre sur quelque chose.]

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > colouring > dyeing > dye [verb (transitive)] > run on to

stainc1440

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 473/2 Steynyn, or stenyyn, as clothe þat lesythe hys coloure, fuco, proprie in tertia persona tantum.

1553 R. Eden tr. S. Münster Treat. Newe India sig. Eiiij^v Lacha, Lacca or Lacta, which steyneth silke & cloth in high redde or crimison coloure.

1566 T. Drant tr. Horace Medicinable Morall sig. H^v To rubbe thynges with thy purple cloths, Iwis it woulde them steane.

1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 37 Celedonie is an Herbe..whose flower..dyeth and stayneth the gatherers hande.

1576 A. Fleming tr. C. Hegendorphinus in Panoplie Epist. 382 His lippes are alwayes staynd with the Juice of Bacchus his berries.

1583 L. Mascall tr. Profitable Bk. Spottes & Staines 14 Against clothes staynde with wine or vineger.

1750 tr. C. Leonardus Mirror of Stones 145 It stains the encircling air with its greenness.

1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 790 Sap of the musa paradisica..stains linen.

1844 G. Bird Urinary Deposits (1857) 188 Several calculi..with layers of urate of ammonia deeply stained with purpurine.

1901 W. R. H. Trowbridge Lett. Mother to Elizabeth ii. 5 The rouge on her neck had stained her collar.

absolute.1805 T. Weaver tr. A. G. Werner Treat. Fossils 191 Solid fossils that stain are not very common.1887 ‘M. Rutherford’ Revol. Tanner's Lane (ed. 8) ii. 31 Tea doesn't stain; I hope it has not gone on your coat.

b. with complement denoting colour.

ΚΠ

?1750 Apol. Life Mr. Bampfylde-Moore Carew (ed. 2) xi. 132 They paint themselves with a Pecone-Root, which stains them of a red~dish Colour.

1827 M. Faraday Chem. Manip. xii. 275 Paper stained yellow by rhubarb.

1844 G. Bird Urinary Deposits (1857) 443 Urates, stained pink with purpurine.

1863 C. Lyell Geol. Evid. Antiq. Man xi. 203 There were many human bones, in old Indian graves in the same district, stained of as black a dye.

1900–13 W. A. N. Dorland Med. Dict. (ed. 7) at Stains Ehrlich's triacid stain..stains erythrocytes orange.

1912 W. G. Smith in Man XII. 197 It [the flint] is white in colour, but in parts very slightly stained ferruginous from adjacent red clay.

c. transferred. Of the blood: To suffuse with colour. Also in passive, to be (naturally) spotted or streaked with colour.

ΘΚΠ

the world > life > the body > skin > complexion > [verb (intransitive)] > be (naturally) spotted or streaked with colour

staina1547

the world > life > the body > skin > complexion > redness > [verb (transitive)] > blush

emblooma1529

staina1547

blush1592

gilda1616

flush1697

overflush1811

colour1824

the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > eye > [verb (transitive)] > by size, shape, etc.

sparkle1601

stain1831

wrinkle1841

bug1865

scrouge1909

scrooch1929

a1547 Earl of Surrey Poems (1964) 9 I know how that the blood forsakes the faas for dredd, And how by shame it staynes agayne the cheke with flaming redd.

1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 76 He is bespotted and stayned dyuersely with diuers colours in a maner like ye Libard.

1768 L. Sterne Sentimental Journey II. 81 That..which stains thy face with crimson, to copy in even thy study.

1831 G. P. R. James Philip Augustus I. iv His blue eyes would have been fine..had they not been..stained, as it were on the very iris, by some hazel spots in the midst of the blue.

d. intransitive. To absorb colouring matter, take a stain.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > colouring > staining > stain [verb (intransitive)]

stain1877

1877 T. H. Huxley & H. N. Martin Course Elem. Biol. (ed. 4) 8 The protoplasm stains brown; the rest of the cell remains unstained.

1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. 9 691 They were of a very faintly granular appearance, staining feebly with log-wood.

1880 Gibbes Histol. 23 When the sections appear to have stained thoroughly remove them.

a. transitive. To damage or blemish the appearance of (something) by colouring a part of its surface; to discolour by spots or streaks of blood, dirt, or other foreign matter not easily removed. In poetic use occasionally: To colour, defile (a river) with blood.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > soil [verb (transitive)] > stain

mealeOE

litc1230

beblotc1374

depaintc1374

entachc1374

stain1382

tache1390

wem1398

molec1400

blob1429

blotc1440

imbruec1450

maculate?a1475

thorough-stain1593

commaculatec1616

stigmatizea1637

tattoo1774

staddle1828

bestain1869

1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Gen. xxxvii. 31 Thei token the coote of hym, and in the blode of a kyde that thei hadden slayn steyneden [L. tinxerunt].

a1500 (?c1450) Merlin xxvii. 554 He and his horse were steyned with blode as he hadde fallen in a blody river.

1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iii. i. 55 The blak droppis of bluide Distillit thairfra, that all the erd quhar it stuide Was spottit of the filth, and stenyt, alaik.

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. lxiii. A And their bloude sprange vpon my cloothes, & so haue I stayned all my rayment [So later versions].

1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. lxiv. A All oure rightuousnesses are as the clothes stayned with the floures of a woman.

1538 T. Elyot Dict. Squaleo, to be..soiled or stainid with som vnclene thing.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. iii. sig. Ee^v Those same antique Peres..Which Greeke & Asian riuers stayned with their blood.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 118 Scarcely the Knife was redden'd with his Gore, Or the black Poyson stain'd the sandy Floor.

1718 N. Rowe tr. Lucan Pharsalia i. 550 See what Reward the grateful Senate yield, For the lost Blood which stains yon Northern Field.

1774 J. Bryant New Syst. II. 214 The birds were found to return with their feet stained with soil.

1791 A. Radcliffe Romance of Forest II. viii. 13 Upon a closer view..it was spotted and stained with rust.

1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby viii. 67 The walls were so stained and discoloured.

1879 F. W. Farrar Life & Work St. Paul I. viii. xxviii. 556 That bent and weary Jew..so stained with the dust of travel.

†b. To spoil (hay, grain) with damp. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > condition of matter > bad condition of matter > cause bad condition in [verb (transitive)] > by damp

stain1787

1787 G. Winter New Syst. Husbandry 229 My barley, which was stained by the inclemency of the season in 1785, I had ground.

1831 J. Morton Gloucestershire Hill-farm 15 in Farm-rep. The hay that has got stained.

†c. To spoil by intermixture. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > condition or state of being mixed or blended > mix or blend [verb (transitive)] > add as ingredient to a mixture > qualify by admixture > spoil by mixing

stain1575

sophisticate1604

1575 G. Gascoigne Glasse of Gouernem. 2nd Chorus sig. F Such wicked means, malitious men can make, The frutfull seede, with worthles weedes to stayne.

d. Hunting. = foil v.¹ 2.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > hunting > thing hunted or game > hunting game [verb (transitive)] > spoil the scent

stain1798

1798 Sporting Mag. 11 87 The ground so stained by running the foil that the scent lay with no certainty.

1897 Earl of Suffolk et al. Encycl. Sport I. 583/1 Stained, injured as regards scent by the previous passage of hounds, horses, or of cattle, &c.

5. figurative.

a. To defile or corrupt morally; to taint with guilt or vice.

ΘΚΠ

society > morality > moral evil > moral or spiritual degeneration > degrading or impairing morally > degrade or impair morally [verb (transitive)] > pollute or defile

afileeOE

awemOE

filec1175

wemc1175

soila1250

foulc1330

defoula1340

bleckc1380

blemishc1380

pollutea1382

tache1390

sulpa1400

vilec1400

spota1413

stain1446

defilec1450

violate1490

tan1530

smear1549

beray1576

moil1596

discolour1598

smut1601

bespurtle1604

sullya1616

commaculatec1616

decolour?c1622

collutulate1623

deturpate1623

berust1631

smutch1640

discolorate1651

smoot1683

tarnish1695

tar1817

dirten1987

1446 J. Lydgate Two Nightingale Poems i. 287 Moch peple viciously Were in this age..thorgh theire vice destreied sore & steyned.

1570 B. Googe tr. T. Kirchmeyer Popish Kingdome i. f. 8^v Lest that he shoulde be periurde calde, and staynde with heresie.

1657 Attest Innocency Z. Crofton 14 A Master of a family this twelve year, or thereabouts, never stained with the least disorder or incivility.

1777 W. Cameron in Sc. Paraphr. xvii. vii Though your guilty souls are stain'd with sins of crimson dye.

1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India II. xii. iii. 649 Intrigues and combinations, which were stained with treachery and assassinations.

1847 J. Yeowell Chron. Anc. Brit. Church x. 104 The British kings were stained with every vice.

†b. To impair the beauty or excellence of. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > cause or effect (harm) [verb (transitive)] > do harm or injury to > affect detrimentally

atterc885

hurtc1200

marc1225

appair1297

impair1297

spilla1300

emblemishc1384

endull1395

blemishc1430

depaira1460

depravea1533

deform1533

envenom1533

vitiate1534

quail1551

impeach1563

subvert1565

craze1573

taint1573

spoil1578

endamage1579

qualify1584

stain1584

crack1590

ravish1594

interess1598

invitiate1598

corrupt1602

venom1621

depauperate1623

detriment1623

flaw1623

embase1625

ungold1637

murder1644

refract1646

depress1647

addle1652

sweal1655

butcher1659

shade1813

mess1823

puckeroo1840

untone1861

blue1880

queer1884

dick1972

forgar-

the mind > attention and judgement > lack of beauty > disfigurement > disfigure [verb (transitive)] > impair the beauty of

blemisha1500

stain1584

flaw1623

scar1697

1584 in D. Masson Reg. Privy Council Scotl. (1880) 1st Ser. III. 702 To blott and stainyie the gude word of God.

1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xiii. 219 Ought not we to doe the best we can to cast out all that steineth and marreth the perfect beautie of his Church?

1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island ii. xv. 20 Which my rude pencil will in limming stain.

c. To be or inflict a permanent reproach to or stigma upon; to blemish, soil (a person's reputation, honour, conscience, etc.); †to charge with something disgraceful. Also intransitive of the conscience: †To suffer stain.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > stain or sully [verb (transitive)]

filea1325

foulc1330

tache1390

dark?c1400

distain1406

smita1413

blemish1414

black?c1425

defoul1470

maculate?a1475

macule1484

tan1530

staina1535

spota1542

smear1549

blot1566

besmear1579

defile1581

attaint1590

soila1596

slubber1599

tack1601

woad1603

besmirch1604

blur1604

to breathe upon ——1608

be-smut1610

clouda1616

sullya1616

taint1623

smutch1640

blackena1649

to cast, put, throw (etc.) a slur on or upon (a person or thing)1654

beslur1675

tarnish1695

blackwash1762

carbonify1792

smirch1820

tattoo1884

dirten1987

a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 65/2 With which infami he wold not haue his honoure stayned for anye crowne.

1541 T. Elyot Image of Gouernance xi. f. 20 If a knyght..had vsed any vnsemely thyng, appayryng or staynyng the estimation of the degree, whych he represented.

1577 T. Kendall tr. Politianus et al. Flowers of Epigrammes f. 102 Thei would not haue y^e Popedome staynde, with any more Pope Iones.

a1600 A. Montgomerie Misc. Poems ii. 5 Conscience stenȝies if he steill.

1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 545 Shee that by her light behaviour had not a little steined her good name.

c1660 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1644 (1955) II. 173 This beautifull Citty is more stayn'd with such horrid acts of revenge..than any one place in Europ.

1678 J. Dryden All for Love iii. 44 I have..stain'd the glory of my Royal House.

a1722 J. Lauder Hist. Observes (1840) 80 It was also at this tyme..designed to stain him with briberie.

a1763 W. King Polit. & Lit. Anecd. (1819) 166 The bloody executions which he [Augustus] ordered..must stain his memory as long as his name shall be remembered.

1797 A. Radcliffe Italian I. iii. 96 One who did not scruple to stain the name of the innocent.

1870 F. W. Farrar Families of Speech i. 37 One of the most infamous and arbitrary acts which stain the name of Napoleon.

1879 J. A. Froude Cæsar vii. 63 He won for himself a reputation which his later cruelties might stain, but could not efface.

d. Often used with double metaphor, esp. with reference to ‘blood’ = bloodguiltiness.

ΚΠ

1577–87 W. Harrison Descr. Eng. (1877) I. ii. xxi. 335 I held it unworthie that anie good man should staine his paper with such frivolous matters.

a1615 W. Mure Wks. I. 23 O spair In guiltles blood thy hands to stayne!

1709 M. Prior Carmen Seculare (new ed.) in Poems Several Occasions 140 Holding his Fasces stain'd with Filial Blood.

1866 C. Kingsley Hereward the Wake II. xiii. 227 Heaven forbid..that the Church should stain her hands with the blood of the worst of sinners.

1868 J. H. Blunt Reformation Church of Eng. I. 365 After Wolsey's fall, every week of Henry's reign was stained with the blood of his subjects.

†e. to stain (a person's) blood: (a) to prove (him) of base descent; (b) to cause ‘corruption of blood’ (see corruption n. 2b). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > law > legal right > withdrawal or loss of legal rights > take away a right [verb (transitive)] > deprive of rights by conviction > attaint

attainta1400

to stain (a person's) blood1569

corrupta1616

taint1732

society > society and the community > social class > the common people > low rank or condition > lowness of birth > [verb (transitive)] > prove of base descent

to stain (a person's) blood1569

1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 530 If he sayde contrarie, he..slaundered his mother, shamed himselfe, and steyned his blood.

1628 E. Coke 1st Pt. Inst. Lawes Eng. §745 By his attainder of Treason or Felonie his blood is so stained and corrupted as..his children cannot be heyres to him.

1679 T. Hobbes Dial. Com. Laws To be attainted is, that his Blood be held in Law as stained and corrupted.

1766 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. ii. xv. 252 The doctrine of escheat upon attainder,..is this: that the blood of the tenant, by the commission of any felony..is corrupted and stained.

†f. To vilify in words, abuse. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disapproval > invective or abuse > abuse [verb (transitive)]

vilea1300

rebutc1330

revilea1393

arunt1399

stainc1450

brawl1474

vituper1484

rebalk1501

to call (rarely to speak) (all) to naught1542

rattle1542

vituperate1542

bedaub1570

beray1576

bespurt1579

wring1581

misuse1583

caperclaw1589

abuse1592

rail1592

exagitate1593

to shoot atc1595

belabour1596

to scour one's mouth on1598

bespurtle1604

conviciate1604

scandala1616

delitigate1623

betongue1639

bespatter1644

rant1647

palt1648

opprobriatea1657

pelt1658

proscind1659

inveigh1670

clapperclaw1692

blackguard1767

philippize1804

drub1811

foul-mouth1822

bullyrag1823

target1837

barge1841

to light on ——1842

slang1844

villainize1857

slangwhang1880

slam-bang1888

vituperize1894

bad-mouth1941

slag1958

zing1962

to dump on (occasionally all over)1967

c1450 Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 385 Thorow here fayre speche oure lawys they steyn.

1642 H. More Ψυχωδια Platonica sig. F6^v The busie soul thus doth her reason strain To write or speak what envious tongue may never stain.

1691 A. Gavin Frauds Romish Monks 63 The Officer very dexterously and freely stain'd the Priest with his Tongue.

†g. To ‘obfuscate’, make tipsy. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [verb (transitive)] > make drunk > make partially drunk

dozy1568

to gild over1574

mizzle1583

flustera1616

stain1631

elevatea1704

flustrate1712

jollify1824

tipsify1837

1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre i. iii. 4 in Wks. II Why? we were all a little stain'd last night, sprinckled with a cup or two.

h. (See quot.)

ΚΠ

a1929 W. Heape Emigration, Migration, & Nomadism (1931) 120 The continued manuring of land by any one species of stock is believed to ‘stain’ the land for that species... The time taken for such staining of land varies in accordance with the nature of the subsoil.

†6.

a. To ornament with coloured designs or patterns. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > pattern or design > pattern [verb (transitive)] > types of pattern or design generally

stain1390

trail1399

arabesque1849

1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 64 Payd for betyng & steynynge of þe same penouns, vj s.

c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 473/2 Steynyn, as steynyowrys, polo.

1466 in Archaeologia 50 42 Item j Rydyl steyned w^t a chalix and the figur of the sacrament on hyt and ij angell.

1482 in H. E. Malden Cely Papers (1900) 118 The cortens be stayned bot on the ton syde.

1488 in Archaeologia 45 117 Item, ij Clothes for the sepulchre, oon with the Passion and the other steyned full of whyte leves.

1506 in G. Oliver Lives Bps. Exeter, etc. (1861) 359 1 front de lineo. stayned cum scriptura ‘Honor Deo’. 1 front cum tuello annexo, stayned cum Crucifixo, Maria et Johanne, Petro et Paulo.

1555 in A. Feuillerat Documents Office of Revels Edward VI (1914) 181 v longe garmentes the vpper Bodyes vpper baces of white cloth of syluer stayned with Collours.

1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey 133 The brests of divers [mummies] being stained with Hieroglyphicall characters.

absolute.1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 225 I wol me noght therof excuse, That I with such colour ne steyne.

†b. To depict in colour. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > paint [verb (transitive)]

meteOE

depaint?c1225

paintc1275

stain1519

to paint out1553

depeinct1579

limn1593

impaint1598

pencil1610

stroke1624

depencil1631

brush1897

1519 in C. Innes Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis (1845) II. 174 Ane grite arres bed..with þe kingis armes and bischoipe Willeam Elphinstone's stenȝeit be [blank].

a1642 F. Kynaston Leoline & Sydanis 1820 A carpet..On which the hyacinth and narcissus blue So naturally were stain'd, as if they grew.

figurative.1569 B. Googe Shippe of Safegarde sig. Dvij^v A follie therefore were it here for me, To touch that he with pencell once did staine.

a. To colour (esp. textile fabrics, paper, wood, stone) by the application of pigment that more or less penetrates the substance instead of forming a coating on the surface, or by means of chemical reagents. In microscopical and histological research: To colour (tissues, etc.) with some pigment so as to render the structure clearly visible.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > colour > colouring > staining > stain [verb (transitive)]

distain1393

wanhuea1500

colour1501

imbrue1529

stain1655

restain1843

imbue1850

1655 E. Terry Voy. E.-India 115 That pretty art of staining, or printing and fixing those variety of Colours in that white Cloth, the People of Asia have engrossed to themselves.

1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 44 There are also made Calicoes, stained of divers colours.

1675 J. Covel Diary in J. T. Bent Early Voy. Levant (1893) 236 Her nails were stein'd (as the custome is here) with aleanna of a golden red.

1712 London Gaz. No. 5018/4 Any Person who..shall Print, Paint, or Stain, any Paper to serve for Hangings.

1712 London Gaz. No. 5025/2 Any Person who shall Print, Paint, Stain or Dye any Callicoes, Silks or Stuffs.

1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) I. ix. 338 An artificial marble formed by staining white marble with corrosive tinctures.

1799 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 1 204 Experiments, made by Professor Beckmann, on staining wood.

1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 398 Magistery of bismuth is sometimes mixed with pomatum for the purpose of staining the air [sic] of a dark colour.

1873 J. Matthews T. Davis's Prepar. Microsc. Obj. (ed. 2) 8 The tissue may be subsequently stained with iodine.

1881 F. Young Every Man his own Mechanic §1638. 731 Let us see what wallpaper is and how it is painted or technically speaking ‘stained’.

1891 F. W. Farrar Darkness & Dawn I. vii. 48 There were rolls of vellum or papyrus, stained saffron-colour at the back.

1892 Photogr. Ann. II. 455 Finished in an altogether superior style..and the whole stained and varnished in imitation mahogany, 21/-.

b. To colour (glass) with transparent colours. Also rarely to depict in stained glass.

ΘΚΠ

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [verb (transitive)] > colour

stain1797

society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [verb (transitive)] > colour > depict in coloured glass

englass1572

stain1893

1797 Encycl. Brit. VII. 779/1 The first thing to be done, in order to paint or stain glass..is to design..the whole subject on paper.

1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 757 (heading) Of the colours used in staining glass.

1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 289 The invention of the art of painting on and staining glass..is..known to have existed for many centuries.

1893 K. L. Bates Eng. Relig. Drama 26 Some Christian hero, whose martyrdom was stained in window, carved in canopy.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	stain
释义	stainn. Brit. /steɪn/, U.S. /steɪn/ Forms: Also 1500s–1600s staine, stayne, 1600s steine, steigne. Etymology: < stain v. †1. The action of staining; pollution, disgrace. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > [noun] staining1530 stain1563 besmearing1574 attainture1608 soilurea1616 smutting1621 sullying1629 macula1649 black wash1856 smirching1862 blear1868 smudging1873 1563 B. Googe Eglogs Epytaphes & Sonettes sig. I.iiii^v Vnhappy wretche that wolde, Haue forced the Ladye of this forte with stayne of Royaltie. To haue consented to his wyll, in fylthye Lecherye. 1587 R. Greene Euphues sig. C3^v The staine of the one did ad a disgrace to the glorie of the other. a1616 W. Shakespeare Timon of Athens (1623) v. ii. 58 Giuing our holy Virgins to the staine Of contumelious, beastly..warre. View more context for this quotation 2. a. A discoloration produced by absorption of or contact with foreign matter; usually, one that penetrates below the surface and is not easily removable. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > [noun] > stained condition > stain lita1325 pleckc1350 blotc1400 smodc1400 discolouring?a1425 spot?a1425 stain1583 denigration1641 discolouration1666 staddle1691 discolour1812 spang1839 blotting1842 suddle1861 staddle-stead1868 dabble1871 staddle-mark1876 1583 L. Mascall tr. Profitable Bk. Spottes & Staines 12 A good way to helpe all staynes in thinne silkes and woollen clothe. 1592 Arden of Feversham ii. ii. 113 Seest thou this goare that cleaueth to my face? From hence nere will I wash this bloody staine, Til Ardens hart be panting in my hand. 1597 W. Shakespeare Romeo & Juliet ii. ii. 75 Loe vpon thy cheeke the staine doth sit, Of an old teare that is not washt off yet. View more context for this quotation 1620 F. Beaumont & J. Fletcher Phylaster v. 53 May their false lights..discouer preases, holes, staines, and oldnesse in their stuffes. 1687 A. Lovell tr. J. de Thévenot Trav. into Levant i. 53 If by mischance Wine should be shed upon their cloaths, the greatest Drunkard that is, endeavours to get out the stain. 1798 J. Ferriar Illustr. Sterne iii. 57 He should produce the portrait..with all the stains and mouldiness of the last century. 1850 G. Cupples Green Hand 100/2 Rusty stains at her hawse-holes. 1856 ‘Stonehenge’ Man. Brit. Rural Sports i. i. i. §4. 4/2 The coops ought to be moved daily, as the stain of the birds is injurious to them. 1877 ‘Rita’ Vivienne ii. iii I have not even waited to remove the stains and dust of my long journey before coming to see you. b. A mark or discoloration on the skin; a blotch or sore. ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > ill health > blemish > [noun] > spot or mark spotOE markOE tachea1400 macula?a1425 ruby1542 plotch1548 flea-biting1552 fleck1598 blanch1608 staina1616 naeve1619 neve1624 dark1637 sunspot1651 pip1676 liver spot1684 beauty spot1795 heat-spot1822 spilus1822 ink-spot1839 punctation1848 punctuation1848 macule1864 soldier's spots1874 pock1894 mouche1959 a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. ii. 45 If thou..wert grim Vgly..Full of vnpleasing blots, and sightlesse staines,..Patch'd with foule Moles..I would not care. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Cymbeline (1623) ii. iv. 139 You do remember This staine [sc. a mole] vpon her? View more context for this quotation 1819 P. B. Shelley Cenci iv. i. 62 Let her food be Poison, untill she be encrusted round With leprous stains! 1845 G. Budd On Dis. Liver 144 This [jaundice] had lessened a good deal, but there was still a light yellow stain of the skin. 1898 J. Hutchinson in Arch. Surg. 9 334 I make him undress, and find him covered on limbs and trunk with blotches and papules and stains. c. Agriculture. A spot (in an ear of corn) produced by mildew or damp. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > disease or injury > [noun] > type of disease > fungal > associated with trees > discolouration caused by stain1731 spot1800 sap-stain1910 sap-staining1910 1731 in 6th Rep. Deputy Keeper Public Rec. App. ii. 119 A new Machine for cleaning Wheat..contrived to take away the stains, smut bags, and other trumpery. d. transferred. A spot or patch of colour different from the ground. Common in Natural History. in fine stain: said of garden flowers with the characteristic markings finely shown. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > variegation > patch of colour > [noun] patch1557 flame1602 flaming1703 stain1712 flash1972 1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 412. ¶5 Those different Stains of Light that shew themselves in Clouds of a different Situation. 1713 A. Pope Windsor-Forest 7 Swift Trouts, diversify'd with Crimson Stains. 1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 241 Not a flow'r But shows some touch, in freckle, streak, or stain, Of his unrivall'd pencil. 1842 Florist's Jrnl. (1846) 3 130 In the bed were several Claudianas in very fine stain. 1860 J. Ruskin Mod. Painters V. 103 The gathering orange stain upon the edge of yonder western peak. 1890 R. Bridges Larks in Shorter Poems v They In sunlight swim; above the furthest stain Of cloud attain. †e. figurative. A slight trace or tinge of. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [noun] > a small quantity or amount > a slight touch or trace specec1330 taste1390 lisounc1400 savourc1400 smatcha1500 smell?a1505 spice1531 smack1539 shadow1586 surmise1586 relish1590 tang1593 touch1597 stain1609 tincture1612 dasha1616 soula1616 twanga1640 whiff1644 haut-goût1650 casta1661 stricturea1672 tinge1736 tinct1752 vestige1756 smattering1764 soupçon1766 smutch1776 shade1791 suspicion1809 lineament1811 trait1815 tint1817 trace1827 skiff1839 spicing1844 smudgea1871 ghost1887 1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida i. ii. 25 There is no man hath a vertue, that he hath not a glimpse of, nor any man an attaint, but he carries some staine of it. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) i. i. 110 You haue some staine of souldier in you. View more context for this quotation f. Hunting. = foil n.⁴ (Cf. stain v. 4d.) ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > thing hunted or game > [noun] > track righta1425 view?1516 persue1530 abature1575 blemish1575 foil1575 marks1575 entry1627 gate1677 file1815 stain1832 1832 Q. Rev. 47 238 A short check from the stain of sheep makes everything comfortable; and the Squire having hit off his fox like a workman, thirteen men [etc.]. 3. figurative. (Often in phrases like to wash a stain, purge a stain.) a. A morally defiling effect on the character or conscience; a grave blemish on a person's reputation; a mark of infamy or disgrace, a stigma. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > [noun] > a stain or slur spota1225 umberc1380 blotc1386 maculate1490 touch1508 blemish1526 blur1548 attaint1592 stain1594 attainder1597 tachec1610 sullya1616 tainta1616 smutch1648 slur1662 woad1663 a blot on an escutcheon1697 blotch1860 smear1943 1594 W. Shakespeare Lucrece sig. M1^v How may this forced staine be wip'd from me? View more context for this quotation 1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence Phormio v. ii, in Terence in Eng. 437 Studying to avoid the staine of niggardlines. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 525 A right ancient race of the Digbyes: which..hath now caught a deepe steine by Sir Euerard Digby drawen into that cursed crew. c1610–15 Life St. Sexburge in C. Horstmann Lives Women Saints (1886) 55 Washing away the staynes of secular pleasures with flouds of teares. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iv. v. 42 Thy Fathers charge shal cleare thee from y^t staine. 1640 T. Nabbes Unfortunate Mother iv. sig. G A truth cleere as the innocence Of babes: after the holy ceremony Hath purg'd th' originall staine. 1645 J. Milton Il Penseroso in Poems 38 His daughter she (in Saturns raign, Such mixture was not held a stain). 1781 W. Cowper Expostulation 74 Till penitence had purg'd the public stain. 1801 M. Edgeworth Prussian Vase in Moral Tales III. 36 No stain affixes to his honour from the accusation. 1838 G. P. R. James Robber I. v. 89 He would never speak so boldly and so tenderly of his mother, if there were any stain upon her name. 1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest (1876) IV. xviii. 143 The probable stain on their birth could hardly be thrown in their teeth in the days of William the bastard. 1882 J. H. Blunt Reformation Church of Eng. II. 484 But the stain of blood could not be washed out. b. A person or thing that causes disgrace. Now rare or Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > [noun] > source of discredit or discrediting circumstance > person or thing causing discredit villainya1382 reproof?c1436 reproach1581 stain1589 1589 T. Nashe Anat. Absurditie sig. Biiii^v To send them to some other mechanicall Arte, that they might not thus be the staine of Arte. 1598 S. Brandon Tragicomoedi of Vertuous Octauia ii. C 5 Stain of thy sexe, thy poisoned speech surcease. 1602 W. Fulbecke Pandectes vi. f. 31^v Antiphon that vicious varlet, and steigne of Athens. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iv. i. 45 Staine to thy Countrymen, thou hear'st thy doom. View more context for this quotation 1649 W. Davenant Love & Honour iii. ii. 85 Hence from my sight, Thou birth ill gotten, and my marriage stain. 1726 W. Broome in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey IV. xviii. 4 A surly vagrant.., The stain of manhood. †c. One who eclipses or casts into the shade. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > outdoing or surpassing > [noun] > one who or that which > one who staina1586 exceeder1625 eclipser1748 surpasser1805 outdoer1824 outshiner1864 overtaker1885 a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) i. xiv. sig. I8^v Hereby I will..lead her, that is the prayse, and yet the staine of all womankinde. 1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. B Staine to all Nimphs, more louely then a man. View more context for this quotation 1605 W. Alexander Alexandræan Trag. iii. ii My sonne that was the glorie of his time, Staine of times past, and light of times to come. †4. Heraldry. (See quot. 1586; and see stainand adj.). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > [noun] > heraldic tincture colourc1475 stain1586 society > communication > indication > insignia > heraldic devices collective > heraldic tincture > [noun] > colour > stain stain1586 1586 J. Ferne Blazon of Gentrie i. 163 Notwithstanding I do with the french men, condemne the two last colours: that is to say, Tawney and sanguine, as no colours. But we will vouchsafe, to haue them called staines. 5. Glass-painting. (See quot. 1832¹.) ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > colouring for glass stain1832 mat1881 colour1914 society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [noun] > glass-colouring > glass-painting > layer of colour stain1832 mat1881 1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 298 There are only three colours..which can be floated on, and which are called stains to distinguish them from others which must be laid on by the strokes of a brush. These stains are orange, red, and lemon-yellow. 1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 298 Orange stain... In floating this stain upon the glass, a large camel-hair pencil..must be used. 1838 Civil Engineer & Architect's Jrnl. 1 156/1 The stains are then put in, with the lights and shadows in enamel, and again passed through the fire. 6. A dye or colouring matter used in staining. a. A liquid preparation used to colour wood, etc., differing from paint in being thinner, and in being absorbed into the pores of the material instead of forming a coating. (See also quot. 1880².) ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > stain staining1541 stain1758 water stain1830 1758 R. Dossie Handmaid to Arts 435 A bright red stain for wood. 1875 E. A. Davidson House-painting 364 The stain is to be applied with a sponge or large brush. 1880 R. V. Tuson Cooley's Cycl. Pract. Receipts (ed. 6) II. 1552 Stains, Confectioner's. 1880 R. V. Tuson Cooley's Cycl. Pract. Receipts (ed. 6) II. 1552 These stains are also used for cakes and pastry. 1895 E. Rowe Hints on Chip-carving 73 Should a very large quantity of the stain be required it would be cheaper to purchase the colours in powders. 1895 E. Rowe Hints on Chip-carving 74 French polish must be used for oil-stains, but for water-stains..wax and turpentine are simpler. b. A dye or pigment used to render minute and transparent structures visible, or to differentiate tissue elements by colouring, for microscopic observations; or to produce specific microchemical reactions. ΘΚΠ the world > life > biology > laboratory analysis > material > [noun] > staining material osmium tetroxide1869 picrocarmine1872 rose bengal1878 stain1880 erythrosin1884 Gram stain1884 vesuvin1885 Nile blue1888 pyronin1895 Janus green1898 counterstain1899 Nissl stain1899 Leishman stain1904 trypan blue1911 quinacrine mustard1957 the world > matter > colour > colouring > colouring matter > [noun] > stain > for microscopy stain1880 crystal violet1966 1880 Gibbes Histol. 23 Some tissues take in the stain very rapidly, others slowly. 1881 W. B. Carpenter Microscope (ed. 6) v. 248 A good blue stain..is also given by the substance termed Indigo-Carmine. 1900–13 W. A. N. Dorland Med. Dict. (ed. 7) 893/2 Anilin blue-black, an anilin dye used as a stain for the study of the central nervous system. Compounds C1. General attributive. a. stain reaction n. ΚΠ 1898 T. C. Allbutt et al. Syst. Med. V. 413 Stain reactions of the blood in diabetes. stain-spot n. ΚΠ a1670 J. Hacket Scrinia Reserata (1693) i. 159 But rip up all his Actions..shew any Stain-Spot in his Fidelity. b. stain-bemoaned adj. ΚΠ a1711 T. Ken Hymnarium 79 in Wks. (1721) II. Before the Judge enthron'd, Plead my Guilt, self-condemn'd, and stain-bemoan'd. C2. † stain-cloth n. Obsolete = stained adj. cloth. ΘΚΠ the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > treated or processed in specific way > [noun] > printed stained cloth1397 stain-cloth1547 print1679 1547 in Archaeologia Cantiana (1874) 9 226 Item rec. of James Lake for a stayne clothe that he bought, xvjd. Item rec. of John Sharpe for iij stayne clothes that he bought, xvjd. 1553–4 in H. J. F. Swayne Churchwardens' Accts. Sarum (1896) 98 Mr. Shorte ffor a stayne cloth iiij^d. 1839 Penny Cycl. XV. 428/2 The effect of it [mosaic] may be obtained, and the beauty of its patterns produced, in stain-cloth flooring. stain painter n. an exponent of this style. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to medium or technique > [noun] > stain painting > painter stain painter1965 1965 New Statesman 30 Apr. 693/2 Some of the hard-edge and stain painters are making matters worse by panicking themselves into the optical movement. stain painting n. a style of painting in which diluted acrylic paints are applied to unsized canvas; a painting executed in this style. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > painting according to medium or technique > [noun] > stain painting stain painting1965 1965 New Statesman 30 Apr. 693/2 The exhibition effects an uneasy marriage between, on the one hand, hard-edge abstraction and stain painting, fields in which the Americans easily excel, and, on the other, optical art. 1974 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 23 Oct. 14/8 Her big canvases..are stain paintings (staining is a technique using acrylics mixed with water, on unsized canvas). stain-resistance n. resistance to staining. ΘΚΠ the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric with specific qualities > [noun] > qualities of wearing1549 unshrinkability1934 crease-resistance1935 stain-resistance1959 sewability1960 1959 Times 12 Jan. 11/5 For use on wool, cotton, or synthetic fibres to improve oil, grease, and water stain-resistance. stain-resistant adj. ΘΚΠ the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > textile fabric or an article of textile fabric > textile fabric > textile fabric manufactured in specific way > treated or processed in specific way > [adjective] > rendered stain-resistant spot-proof1886 stainless1897 stain-resistant1960 1960 Farmer & Stockbreeder 12 Jan. (Suppl.) 3/3 Casual coat by Salbry is in waterproof, stain-resistant Norzon and has a fleecy wool lining. Draft additions September 2016 stain remover n. a product used to remove stains, usually from a fabric, carpet, etc. Frequently figurative and in figurative contexts; cf. sense 3a. In quot. 1846 as part of an extended metaphor. ΚΠ 1846 E. B. Lee tr. J. Paul Walt & Vult II. xvi. 130 Such spots upon the reputation, are like the stains of perfumed waters upon handkerchiefs, that would fade of themselves, if left without the aid of..stain-removers. 1925 Woman's World (Chicago) Apr. 68/4 (advt.) Stuart's Stain Remover. Removes ink, iron rust, grass and fruit stains. 1975 Furrow May 287 A theological stain remover to bring up the soul cleaner than you ever thought possible. 2009 S. Andrews Hotel Housek. (ed. 2) xxix. 255 Blood [stain]... Steep in enzyme stain remover. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online March 2022). stainv. Brit. /steɪn/, U.S. /steɪn/ Forms: Middle English–1500s steyne, Middle English–1500s steyn, stene, 1500s steane, 1500s–1600s stane, 1600s stein; Middle English stenyyn, 1500s Scottish stenȝie, stainyie, steinȝie, steingyie, staingȝe, stinȝie; Middle English–1500s stayne, 1500s staine, 1500s– stain. Etymology: aphetic < Old French desteign-, desteindre (modern French déteindre ), < des- dis- prefix + teindre to dye: see distain v., which appears in our quots. at the same time as the aphetic form. The verb in French and in the other Romance languages has only its etymological sense ‘to remove the dye from’, intransitive ‘to lose colour, fade, be washed out’. Some of the English senses, both of stain and distain, are difficult to account for; it is possible that in Anglo-Norman the prefix des- in desteindre may sometimes have been taken in the sense ‘diversely, differently’; it is also possible that the verb of French origin may have coalesced with an adoption of Old Norse steina to paint, < stein-n paint, probably identical with steinn stone. †1. a. transitive. To deprive of colour. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > lose colour [verb (transitive)] > deprive of colour distainc1385 undye14.. stain1477 fade1598 discolourize1825 achromatizea1830 decolorize1836 throw?1845 1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 65 Whan his visage is so desteigned.] 1477 W. Caxton tr. R. Le Fèvre Hist. Jason (1913) 55 I haue a seknes & maladye right secrete whiche shal first slee me er my face may be stayned or discoloured. 1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 734/1 I stayne a thynge, I marre the colour, or glosse of it, je destayns. 1589 T. Lodge Scillaes Metamorphosis E 2 b Whereas vermillion hue Is stained in sight. †b. Of the sun, etc.: To deprive (feebler luminaries) of their lustre. Also figurative of a person or thing: To throw into the shade by superior beauty or excellence; to eclipse. Obsolete. (Very common in the 16th cent.) ΘΚΠ the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > make dim [verb (transitive)] > render dim by comparison stain1557 perstringe1603 blind1633 eclipse1810 the world > action or operation > prosperity > advancement or progress > outdoing or surpassing > outdo or surpass [verb (transitive)] > put in the shade or put to shame shamec1400 to put down1494 extinguish1551 stain1557 overshadow1581 cloud1582 defacea1592 shend1596 to lay up1601 to shine down1623 dazzle1643 umbrage1647 foila1687 efface1717 eclipse1718 shade?1748 put into the shade1796 to take the shine out of (less frequently from, U.S. off)1819 to put to shame1854 to leave (a person) standing1864 to lay over1869 blanket1884 upstage1921 1557 Earl of Surrey et al. Songes & Sonettes sig. U.ii For here at hande approcheth one: Whose face will staine you all. a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1593) iii. sig. Gg3 O voice that doth, the Thrush in shrilnes staine. c1595 Countess of Pembroke Psalme lxxii. 73 in Coll. Wks. (1998) II. 91 The Sunne..all lights shall stayne. 1608 E. Topsell Hist. Serpents 94 In largenesse of body and greatnes of his hart..he staineth all the rest. 1610 Histrio-mastix iii. 137 This those excells as farre As glorious Tytan staines a silly Starre. 1613 T. Heywood Brazen Age ii. ii How hath thy valour with thy fortune ioyn'd, To make thee staine the generall fortitude Of all the Princes we deriue from Greece. 1642 T. Fuller Holy State iv. ix. 282 He stains all other mens lives with the clearnesse of his own. 1648 R. Crashaw Steps to Temple (ed. 2) 109 The Son, Whose blush the Moone beauteously marres, And staines the timerous light of starres. †c. To obscure the lustre of. literal and figurative. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > make dim [verb (transitive)] > deprive of lustre > obscure the lustre of stain1589 1589 R. Greene Menaphon sig. I4^v Sweete Natures pompe, if my deficient phraze Hath staind thy glories by too little skill, Yeeld pardon. 1594 J. Dickenson Arisbas sig. C A small cloude in a cleare day may somewhat stayne, not wholy stop the Sunnes light. 1596 J. Dalrymple tr. J. Leslie Hist. Scotl. (1895) II. 45 O Detestable persounis, quha sa bricht a lycht blew out, stinȝeit sa honorable an ornament! 1622 H. Peacham Compl. Gentleman i. 10 Thirdly, whether Pouertie impeacheth or staineth Nobilitie. 1657 S. Ford in R. Austen Treat. Fruit-trees (ed. 2) ii. sig. ††2 God..is pleased to staine the pride of men. †2. intransitive. To lose colour or lustre. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > state or mode of having colour > absence of colour > lose colour [verb (intransitive)] fade13.. to cast coloura1375 staina1387 faint1430 dow1502 discolour1612 dilute1764 decolorize1908 the world > matter > light > darkness or absence of light > dimness or absence of brightness > grow dim or lose brightness [verb (intransitive)] > lose lustre staina1387 tarnish1678 dislustre1890 a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 15 Þe redenesse þerof is wonder fyn and stable, and steyneþ neuere wiþ colde ne with hete. a1568 in J. Cranstoun Satirical Poems Reformation (1891) I. xlviii. 15 My clayth will nocht stenȝie, Suppois ȝe weit it nycht and day. 1578 J. Lyly Euphues f. 25 I finde it nowe for a setled truth,..that the Purple dye will neuer staine, that the pure Cyuet will neuer loose his sauour, [etc.]. 1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets xxxiii. sig. C3^v Suns of the world may staine, when heauens sun stainteh [sic] . View more context for this quotation 1614 T. Gentleman Englands Way to win Wealth 42 Wet and cold can not make them shrinke nor staine, that the North-seas..haue dyed in graine, for such purposes. 3. a. Of something dyed or coloured: To impart its colour to (something in contact). Also in wider use (e.g. said of a chemical reagent), to alter the colour of (something to which it is applied).[Cf. French déteindre sur quelque chose.] ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > colouring > dyeing > dye [verb (transitive)] > run on to stainc1440 c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 473/2 Steynyn, or stenyyn, as clothe þat lesythe hys coloure, fuco, proprie in tertia persona tantum. 1553 R. Eden tr. S. Münster Treat. Newe India sig. Eiiij^v Lacha, Lacca or Lacta, which steyneth silke & cloth in high redde or crimison coloure. 1566 T. Drant tr. Horace Medicinable Morall sig. H^v To rubbe thynges with thy purple cloths, Iwis it woulde them steane. 1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 37 Celedonie is an Herbe..whose flower..dyeth and stayneth the gatherers hande. 1576 A. Fleming tr. C. Hegendorphinus in Panoplie Epist. 382 His lippes are alwayes staynd with the Juice of Bacchus his berries. 1583 L. Mascall tr. Profitable Bk. Spottes & Staines 14 Against clothes staynde with wine or vineger. 1750 tr. C. Leonardus Mirror of Stones 145 It stains the encircling air with its greenness. 1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 790 Sap of the musa paradisica..stains linen. 1844 G. Bird Urinary Deposits (1857) 188 Several calculi..with layers of urate of ammonia deeply stained with purpurine. 1901 W. R. H. Trowbridge Lett. Mother to Elizabeth ii. 5 The rouge on her neck had stained her collar. absolute.1805 T. Weaver tr. A. G. Werner Treat. Fossils 191 Solid fossils that stain are not very common.1887 ‘M. Rutherford’ Revol. Tanner's Lane (ed. 8) ii. 31 Tea doesn't stain; I hope it has not gone on your coat. b. with complement denoting colour. ΚΠ ?1750 Apol. Life Mr. Bampfylde-Moore Carew (ed. 2) xi. 132 They paint themselves with a Pecone-Root, which stains them of a red~dish Colour. 1827 M. Faraday Chem. Manip. xii. 275 Paper stained yellow by rhubarb. 1844 G. Bird Urinary Deposits (1857) 443 Urates, stained pink with purpurine. 1863 C. Lyell Geol. Evid. Antiq. Man xi. 203 There were many human bones, in old Indian graves in the same district, stained of as black a dye. 1900–13 W. A. N. Dorland Med. Dict. (ed. 7) at Stains Ehrlich's triacid stain..stains erythrocytes orange. 1912 W. G. Smith in Man XII. 197 It [the flint] is white in colour, but in parts very slightly stained ferruginous from adjacent red clay. c. transferred. Of the blood: To suffuse with colour. Also in passive, to be (naturally) spotted or streaked with colour. ΘΚΠ the world > life > the body > skin > complexion > [verb (intransitive)] > be (naturally) spotted or streaked with colour staina1547 the world > life > the body > skin > complexion > redness > [verb (transitive)] > blush emblooma1529 staina1547 blush1592 gilda1616 flush1697 overflush1811 colour1824 the world > life > the body > external parts of body > head > face > eye > [verb (transitive)] > by size, shape, etc. sparkle1601 stain1831 wrinkle1841 bug1865 scrouge1909 scrooch1929 a1547 Earl of Surrey Poems (1964) 9 I know how that the blood forsakes the faas for dredd, And how by shame it staynes agayne the cheke with flaming redd. 1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest f. 76 He is bespotted and stayned dyuersely with diuers colours in a maner like ye Libard. 1768 L. Sterne Sentimental Journey II. 81 That..which stains thy face with crimson, to copy in even thy study. 1831 G. P. R. James Philip Augustus I. iv His blue eyes would have been fine..had they not been..stained, as it were on the very iris, by some hazel spots in the midst of the blue. d. intransitive. To absorb colouring matter, take a stain. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > colouring > staining > stain [verb (intransitive)] stain1877 1877 T. H. Huxley & H. N. Martin Course Elem. Biol. (ed. 4) 8 The protoplasm stains brown; the rest of the cell remains unstained. 1879 St. George's Hosp. Rep. 9 691 They were of a very faintly granular appearance, staining feebly with log-wood. 1880 Gibbes Histol. 23 When the sections appear to have stained thoroughly remove them. 4. a. transitive. To damage or blemish the appearance of (something) by colouring a part of its surface; to discolour by spots or streaks of blood, dirt, or other foreign matter not easily removed. In poetic use occasionally: To colour, defile (a river) with blood. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > cleanness and dirtiness > dirtiness > dirt > soiled condition > soil [verb (transitive)] > stain mealeOE litc1230 beblotc1374 depaintc1374 entachc1374 stain1382 tache1390 wem1398 molec1400 blob1429 blotc1440 imbruec1450 maculate?a1475 thorough-stain1593 commaculatec1616 stigmatizea1637 tattoo1774 staddle1828 bestain1869 1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) Gen. xxxvii. 31 Thei token the coote of hym, and in the blode of a kyde that thei hadden slayn steyneden [L. tinxerunt]. a1500 (?c1450) Merlin xxvii. 554 He and his horse were steyned with blode as he hadde fallen in a blody river. 1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid iii. i. 55 The blak droppis of bluide Distillit thairfra, that all the erd quhar it stuide Was spottit of the filth, and stenyt, alaik. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. lxiii. A And their bloude sprange vpon my cloothes, & so haue I stayned all my rayment [So later versions]. 1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. lxiv. A All oure rightuousnesses are as the clothes stayned with the floures of a woman. 1538 T. Elyot Dict. Squaleo, to be..soiled or stainid with som vnclene thing. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. iii. sig. Ee^v Those same antique Peres..Which Greeke & Asian riuers stayned with their blood. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 118 Scarcely the Knife was redden'd with his Gore, Or the black Poyson stain'd the sandy Floor. View more context for this quotation 1718 N. Rowe tr. Lucan Pharsalia i. 550 See what Reward the grateful Senate yield, For the lost Blood which stains yon Northern Field. 1774 J. Bryant New Syst. II. 214 The birds were found to return with their feet stained with soil. 1791 A. Radcliffe Romance of Forest II. viii. 13 Upon a closer view..it was spotted and stained with rust. 1839 C. Dickens Nicholas Nickleby viii. 67 The walls were so stained and discoloured. 1879 F. W. Farrar Life & Work St. Paul I. viii. xxviii. 556 That bent and weary Jew..so stained with the dust of travel. †b. To spoil (hay, grain) with damp. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > condition of matter > bad condition of matter > cause bad condition in [verb (transitive)] > by damp stain1787 1787 G. Winter New Syst. Husbandry 229 My barley, which was stained by the inclemency of the season in 1785, I had ground. 1831 J. Morton Gloucestershire Hill-farm 15 in Farm-rep. The hay that has got stained. †c. To spoil by intermixture. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > condition or state of being mixed or blended > mix or blend [verb (transitive)] > add as ingredient to a mixture > qualify by admixture > spoil by mixing stain1575 sophisticate1604 1575 G. Gascoigne Glasse of Gouernem. 2nd Chorus sig. F Such wicked means, malitious men can make, The frutfull seede, with worthles weedes to stayne. d. Hunting. = foil v.¹ 2. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > hunting > thing hunted or game > hunting game [verb (transitive)] > spoil the scent stain1798 1798 Sporting Mag. 11 87 The ground so stained by running the foil that the scent lay with no certainty. 1897 Earl of Suffolk et al. Encycl. Sport I. 583/1 Stained, injured as regards scent by the previous passage of hounds, horses, or of cattle, &c. 5. figurative. a. To defile or corrupt morally; to taint with guilt or vice. ΘΚΠ society > morality > moral evil > moral or spiritual degeneration > degrading or impairing morally > degrade or impair morally [verb (transitive)] > pollute or defile afileeOE awemOE filec1175 wemc1175 soila1250 foulc1330 defoula1340 bleckc1380 blemishc1380 pollutea1382 tache1390 sulpa1400 vilec1400 spota1413 stain1446 defilec1450 violate1490 tan1530 smear1549 beray1576 moil1596 discolour1598 smut1601 bespurtle1604 sullya1616 commaculatec1616 decolour?c1622 collutulate1623 deturpate1623 berust1631 smutch1640 discolorate1651 smoot1683 tarnish1695 tar1817 dirten1987 1446 J. Lydgate Two Nightingale Poems i. 287 Moch peple viciously Were in this age..thorgh theire vice destreied sore & steyned. 1570 B. Googe tr. T. Kirchmeyer Popish Kingdome i. f. 8^v Lest that he shoulde be periurde calde, and staynde with heresie. 1657 Attest Innocency Z. Crofton 14 A Master of a family this twelve year, or thereabouts, never stained with the least disorder or incivility. 1777 W. Cameron in Sc. Paraphr. xvii. vii Though your guilty souls are stain'd with sins of crimson dye. 1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India II. xii. iii. 649 Intrigues and combinations, which were stained with treachery and assassinations. 1847 J. Yeowell Chron. Anc. Brit. Church x. 104 The British kings were stained with every vice. †b. To impair the beauty or excellence of. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > cause or effect (harm) [verb (transitive)] > do harm or injury to > affect detrimentally atterc885 hurtc1200 marc1225 appair1297 impair1297 spilla1300 emblemishc1384 endull1395 blemishc1430 depaira1460 depravea1533 deform1533 envenom1533 vitiate1534 quail1551 impeach1563 subvert1565 craze1573 taint1573 spoil1578 endamage1579 qualify1584 stain1584 crack1590 ravish1594 interess1598 invitiate1598 corrupt1602 venom1621 depauperate1623 detriment1623 flaw1623 embase1625 ungold1637 murder1644 refract1646 depress1647 addle1652 sweal1655 butcher1659 shade1813 mess1823 puckeroo1840 untone1861 blue1880 queer1884 dick1972 forgar- the mind > attention and judgement > lack of beauty > disfigurement > disfigure [verb (transitive)] > impair the beauty of blemisha1500 stain1584 flaw1623 scar1697 1584 in D. Masson Reg. Privy Council Scotl. (1880) 1st Ser. III. 702 To blott and stainyie the gude word of God. 1585 Abp. E. Sandys Serm. xiii. 219 Ought not we to doe the best we can to cast out all that steineth and marreth the perfect beautie of his Church? 1633 P. Fletcher Purple Island ii. xv. 20 Which my rude pencil will in limming stain. c. To be or inflict a permanent reproach to or stigma upon; to blemish, soil (a person's reputation, honour, conscience, etc.); †to charge with something disgraceful. Also intransitive of the conscience: †To suffer stain. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disrepute > damage to reputation > sullying or staining of reputation > stain or sully [verb (transitive)] filea1325 foulc1330 tache1390 dark?c1400 distain1406 smita1413 blemish1414 black?c1425 defoul1470 maculate?a1475 macule1484 tan1530 staina1535 spota1542 smear1549 blot1566 besmear1579 defile1581 attaint1590 soila1596 slubber1599 tack1601 woad1603 besmirch1604 blur1604 to breathe upon ——1608 be-smut1610 clouda1616 sullya1616 taint1623 smutch1640 blackena1649 to cast, put, throw (etc.) a slur on or upon (a person or thing)1654 beslur1675 tarnish1695 blackwash1762 carbonify1792 smirch1820 tattoo1884 dirten1987 a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 65/2 With which infami he wold not haue his honoure stayned for anye crowne. 1541 T. Elyot Image of Gouernance xi. f. 20 If a knyght..had vsed any vnsemely thyng, appayryng or staynyng the estimation of the degree, whych he represented. 1577 T. Kendall tr. Politianus et al. Flowers of Epigrammes f. 102 Thei would not haue y^e Popedome staynde, with any more Pope Iones. a1600 A. Montgomerie Misc. Poems ii. 5 Conscience stenȝies if he steill. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 545 Shee that by her light behaviour had not a little steined her good name. c1660 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1644 (1955) II. 173 This beautifull Citty is more stayn'd with such horrid acts of revenge..than any one place in Europ. 1678 J. Dryden All for Love iii. 44 I have..stain'd the glory of my Royal House. a1722 J. Lauder Hist. Observes (1840) 80 It was also at this tyme..designed to stain him with briberie. a1763 W. King Polit. & Lit. Anecd. (1819) 166 The bloody executions which he [Augustus] ordered..must stain his memory as long as his name shall be remembered. 1797 A. Radcliffe Italian I. iii. 96 One who did not scruple to stain the name of the innocent. 1870 F. W. Farrar Families of Speech i. 37 One of the most infamous and arbitrary acts which stain the name of Napoleon. 1879 J. A. Froude Cæsar vii. 63 He won for himself a reputation which his later cruelties might stain, but could not efface. d. Often used with double metaphor, esp. with reference to ‘blood’ = bloodguiltiness. ΚΠ 1577–87 W. Harrison Descr. Eng. (1877) I. ii. xxi. 335 I held it unworthie that anie good man should staine his paper with such frivolous matters. a1615 W. Mure Wks. I. 23 O spair In guiltles blood thy hands to stayne! 1709 M. Prior Carmen Seculare (new ed.) in Poems Several Occasions 140 Holding his Fasces stain'd with Filial Blood. 1866 C. Kingsley Hereward the Wake II. xiii. 227 Heaven forbid..that the Church should stain her hands with the blood of the worst of sinners. 1868 J. H. Blunt Reformation Church of Eng. I. 365 After Wolsey's fall, every week of Henry's reign was stained with the blood of his subjects. †e. to stain (a person's) blood: (a) to prove (him) of base descent; (b) to cause ‘corruption of blood’ (see corruption n. 2b). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > law > legal right > withdrawal or loss of legal rights > take away a right [verb (transitive)] > deprive of rights by conviction > attaint attainta1400 to stain (a person's) blood1569 corrupta1616 taint1732 society > society and the community > social class > the common people > low rank or condition > lowness of birth > [verb (transitive)] > prove of base descent to stain (a person's) blood1569 1569 R. Grafton Chron. II. 530 If he sayde contrarie, he..slaundered his mother, shamed himselfe, and steyned his blood. 1628 E. Coke 1st Pt. Inst. Lawes Eng. §745 By his attainder of Treason or Felonie his blood is so stained and corrupted as..his children cannot be heyres to him. 1679 T. Hobbes Dial. Com. Laws To be attainted is, that his Blood be held in Law as stained and corrupted. 1766 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. ii. xv. 252 The doctrine of escheat upon attainder,..is this: that the blood of the tenant, by the commission of any felony..is corrupted and stained. †f. To vilify in words, abuse. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > contempt > disapproval > invective or abuse > abuse [verb (transitive)] vilea1300 rebutc1330 revilea1393 arunt1399 stainc1450 brawl1474 vituper1484 rebalk1501 to call (rarely to speak) (all) to naught1542 rattle1542 vituperate1542 bedaub1570 beray1576 bespurt1579 wring1581 misuse1583 caperclaw1589 abuse1592 rail1592 exagitate1593 to shoot atc1595 belabour1596 to scour one's mouth on1598 bespurtle1604 conviciate1604 scandala1616 delitigate1623 betongue1639 bespatter1644 rant1647 palt1648 opprobriatea1657 pelt1658 proscind1659 inveigh1670 clapperclaw1692 blackguard1767 philippize1804 drub1811 foul-mouth1822 bullyrag1823 target1837 barge1841 to light on ——1842 slang1844 villainize1857 slangwhang1880 slam-bang1888 vituperize1894 bad-mouth1941 slag1958 zing1962 to dump on (occasionally all over)1967 c1450 Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 385 Thorow here fayre speche oure lawys they steyn. 1642 H. More Ψυχωδια Platonica sig. F6^v The busie soul thus doth her reason strain To write or speak what envious tongue may never stain. 1691 A. Gavin Frauds Romish Monks 63 The Officer very dexterously and freely stain'd the Priest with his Tongue. †g. To ‘obfuscate’, make tipsy. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > drink > thirst > excess in drinking > [verb (transitive)] > make drunk > make partially drunk dozy1568 to gild over1574 mizzle1583 flustera1616 stain1631 elevatea1704 flustrate1712 jollify1824 tipsify1837 1631 B. Jonson Bartholmew Fayre i. iii. 4 in Wks. II Why? we were all a little stain'd last night, sprinckled with a cup or two. h. (See quot.) ΚΠ a1929 W. Heape Emigration, Migration, & Nomadism (1931) 120 The continued manuring of land by any one species of stock is believed to ‘stain’ the land for that species... The time taken for such staining of land varies in accordance with the nature of the subsoil. †6. a. To ornament with coloured designs or patterns. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > pattern or design > pattern [verb (transitive)] > types of pattern or design generally stain1390 trail1399 arabesque1849 1426–7 in H. Littlehales Medieval Rec. London City Church (1905) 64 Payd for betyng & steynynge of þe same penouns, vj s. c1440 Promptorium Parvulorum 473/2 Steynyn, as steynyowrys, polo. 1466 in Archaeologia 50 42 Item j Rydyl steyned w^t a chalix and the figur of the sacrament on hyt and ij angell. 1482 in H. E. Malden Cely Papers (1900) 118 The cortens be stayned bot on the ton syde. 1488 in Archaeologia 45 117 Item, ij Clothes for the sepulchre, oon with the Passion and the other steyned full of whyte leves. 1506 in G. Oliver Lives Bps. Exeter, etc. (1861) 359 1 front de lineo. stayned cum scriptura ‘Honor Deo’. 1 front cum tuello annexo, stayned cum Crucifixo, Maria et Johanne, Petro et Paulo. 1555 in A. Feuillerat Documents Office of Revels Edward VI (1914) 181 v longe garmentes the vpper Bodyes vpper baces of white cloth of syluer stayned with Collours. 1615 G. Sandys Relation of Journey 133 The brests of divers [mummies] being stained with Hieroglyphicall characters. absolute.1390 J. Gower Confessio Amantis I. 225 I wol me noght therof excuse, That I with such colour ne steyne. †b. To depict in colour. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > painting and drawing > painting > paint [verb (transitive)] meteOE depaint?c1225 paintc1275 stain1519 to paint out1553 depeinct1579 limn1593 impaint1598 pencil1610 stroke1624 depencil1631 brush1897 1519 in C. Innes Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis (1845) II. 174 Ane grite arres bed..with þe kingis armes and bischoipe Willeam Elphinstone's stenȝeit be [blank]. a1642 F. Kynaston Leoline & Sydanis 1820 A carpet..On which the hyacinth and narcissus blue So naturally were stain'd, as if they grew. figurative.1569 B. Googe Shippe of Safegarde sig. Dvij^v A follie therefore were it here for me, To touch that he with pencell once did staine. 7. a. To colour (esp. textile fabrics, paper, wood, stone) by the application of pigment that more or less penetrates the substance instead of forming a coating on the surface, or by means of chemical reagents. In microscopical and histological research: To colour (tissues, etc.) with some pigment so as to render the structure clearly visible. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > colour > colouring > staining > stain [verb (transitive)] distain1393 wanhuea1500 colour1501 imbrue1529 stain1655 restain1843 imbue1850 1655 E. Terry Voy. E.-India 115 That pretty art of staining, or printing and fixing those variety of Colours in that white Cloth, the People of Asia have engrossed to themselves. 1660 F. Brooke tr. V. Le Blanc World Surveyed 44 There are also made Calicoes, stained of divers colours. 1675 J. Covel Diary in J. T. Bent Early Voy. Levant (1893) 236 Her nails were stein'd (as the custome is here) with aleanna of a golden red. 1712 London Gaz. No. 5018/4 Any Person who..shall Print, Paint, or Stain, any Paper to serve for Hangings. 1712 London Gaz. No. 5025/2 Any Person who shall Print, Paint, Stain or Dye any Callicoes, Silks or Stuffs. 1799 tr. Laboratory (ed. 6) I. ix. 338 An artificial marble formed by staining white marble with corrosive tinctures. 1799 Med. & Physical Jrnl. 1 204 Experiments, made by Professor Beckmann, on staining wood. 1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 398 Magistery of bismuth is sometimes mixed with pomatum for the purpose of staining the air [sic] of a dark colour. 1873 J. Matthews T. Davis's Prepar. Microsc. Obj. (ed. 2) 8 The tissue may be subsequently stained with iodine. 1881 F. Young Every Man his own Mechanic §1638. 731 Let us see what wallpaper is and how it is painted or technically speaking ‘stained’. 1891 F. W. Farrar Darkness & Dawn I. vii. 48 There were rolls of vellum or papyrus, stained saffron-colour at the back. 1892 Photogr. Ann. II. 455 Finished in an altogether superior style..and the whole stained and varnished in imitation mahogany, 21/-. b. To colour (glass) with transparent colours. Also rarely to depict in stained glass. ΘΚΠ society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [verb (transitive)] > colour stain1797 society > leisure > the arts > visual arts > ornamental art and craft > ornamental glass-work > [verb (transitive)] > colour > depict in coloured glass englass1572 stain1893 1797 Encycl. Brit. VII. 779/1 The first thing to be done, in order to paint or stain glass..is to design..the whole subject on paper. 1815 J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 757 (heading) Of the colours used in staining glass. 1832 G. R. Porter Treat. Manuf. Porcelain & Glass xiv. 289 The invention of the art of painting on and staining glass..is..known to have existed for many centuries. 1893 K. L. Bates Eng. Relig. Drama 26 Some Christian hero, whose martyrdom was stained in window, carved in canopy. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1915; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < n.1547v.1382
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