marmar /mɑː $ mɑːr/ ●○○ verb (past tense and past participle marred, present participle marring) [transitive] 
Word Origin Examples
Their wedding was marred by the death of Jenny’s mother a week earlier. A frown marred his handsome features.► see thesaurus at spoil
Word OriginWORD ORIGINmar
Verb TableOrigin:
Old English mierranVERB TABLE
mar
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | mar |
| he, she, it | mars | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | marred |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have marred |
| he, she, it | has marred | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had marred |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will mar |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have marred |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am marring |
| he, she, it | is marring | |
| you, we, they | are marring | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was marring |
| you, we, they | were marring | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been marring |
| he, she, it | has been marring | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been marring |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be marring |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been marring |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- Electricity cables and oil pipelines mar many of the world's most beautiful landscapes.
- He had handsome Arabic features, marred by a long scar across his face.
- Outbreaks of fighting and lawlessness marred the New Year celebrations.
- The movie's premiere was marred by gang-related violence.
- The race was marred by a horrific accident involving Niki Lauda.
- The table was marred by cigarette burns.
- Do these really mar our understanding of informative articles, aiming to make us wiser on equestrian subjects?
- During the rest of that day there was no other adventure to mar the peace of their journey.
- First, the campaign was free and fair, though marred by mudslinging.
- I see what were once beautiful, shade-giving trees left marred and destroyed.
- Low, clear conditions marred Bradford's charity open on the usually prolific Cowthorpe reaches of the River Nidd.
- The occasion was marred by bickering.
- There was no incident of any kind to mar the journey until we ran into that ditch in Rodgers Field.
- Two unsightly slush machines mar the ambience, and tacky little bowls of pretzels are strewn throughout.
THESAURUS► spoil
Collocations to have a bad effect on something so that it is much less attractive, enjoyable etc: · New housing developments are spoiling the countryside.· The bad weather completely spoiled our holiday.
► ruin to spoil something completely and permanently: · Using harsh soap to wash your face can ruin your skin.· The argument ruined the evening for me.
► mar written to spoil something by making it less attractive or enjoyable: · His handsome Arab features were marred by a long scar across his face.· Outbreaks of fighting marred the New Year celebrations.
► detract from something to slightly spoil something that is generally very good, beautiful, or impressive: · The huge number of tourists rather detracts from the city’s appeal.· There were a few minor irritations, but this did not detract from our enjoyment of the holiday.
► undermine to spoil something that you have been trying to achieve: · The bombings undermined several months of careful negotiations.
► sour to spoil a friendly relationship between people or countries: · The affair has soured relations between the UK and Russia.
► poison to spoil a close relationship completely, so that people can no longer trust each other: · Their marriage was poisoned by a terrible dark secret.
► mess something up informal to spoil something important or something that has been carefully planned: · If there’s any delay, it will mess up our whole schedule.
Longman Language Activatorto make an event less enjoyable or successful► spoil · The bad weather completely spoiled our holiday.· Why did you have to invite Jerry? You've spoiled the whole weekend.· This was her moment of glory, and she wasn't going to let anyone spoil it.spoil something for somebody · She wanted to do her own thing, but was afraid of spoiling Christmas for the rest of the family.spoil things · He got very drunk that evening, and seemed determined to spoil things for all of us.
► ruin to completely spoil an event or occasion, with the result that no-one enjoys it: · How can you prevent stomach upsets from ruining your holiday?ruin something for somebody: · John and Sandy argued all the time, which completely ruined the evening for the rest of us.
► mar if something unpleasant such as an argument or accident mars a big or important event, it makes it less enjoyable or less successful: · Outbreaks of fighting and lawlessness marred the New Year celebrations.· The race was marred by a horrific accident involving Niki Lauda.
► put a damper on if bad news, bad weather etc puts a damper on something, especially on a social event such as a party, it spoils people's enjoyment of it: · The bad news put a damper on the celebrations.· Torrential rain put a damper on the event, sending bedraggled guests squelching across lawns to seek shelter.
► cast a shadow over if something casts a shadow over an event, period of time etc, it makes people feel less happy or hopeful because they are worrying about it: · The threat of war cast a shadow over the summer of 1939.· This argument with Kuroda did, I must admit, cast a shadow over my mood.
to make something look, taste, or seem much less good► spoil · A badly positioned path can spoil the appearance of a garden.· The power station is extremely ugly, and it spoils the view of the sea.spoil something for somebody · New housing developments are spoiling the countryside for everyone.
► ruin to completely spoil something: · The rain had ruined her best velvet skirt.· Don't use harsh soap to wash your face. It will ruin your skin.· Protestors say that the proposed new airport will ruin this peaceful area.
► mar written to spoil the appearance or beauty of a person or place: · Electricity cables and oil pipelines mar many of the world's most beautiful landscapes.· He had handsome Arabic features, marred by a long scar across his face.
► detract from to slightly spoil something that is generally very good, beautiful, impressive etc: · Even a bruise on her cheekbone did not detract from her beauty.· The proposed building would detract from the character of the surrounding area.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► only
to make something less attractive or enjoyable SYN spoil: · Sally lived in a happy whirl marred only by worrying about how far she should go.· His round of 70 was marred only by a double bogey at the twelfth and a bogey at the thirteenth.
NOUN► violence· The election day was marred by violence, and at least ten people were reported killed in anti-government demonstrations in three cities.
Their wedding was marred by the death of Jenny’s mother a week earlier. A frown marred his handsome features.► see thesaurus at spoil