besmirch
verb
be·smirch bi-ˈsmərch 
bē-
besmirched; besmirching; besmirches
transitive verb
: to cause harm or damage to the purity, luster, or beauty of (something) : sully, soil
besmirching her reputation
High ideals were besmirched by cruelty and greed …
R. A. Newhall
R. A. NewhallAlthough the accusations against Normand were unsupported, her name was besmirched. John Lahr
John LahrDarwin was exasperated by Wallace's gullibility and feared that his activities would somehow besmirch the theory of evolution. Anthony Gottlieb
Anthony GottliebThe problem is that the vast majority of people of all nations … cherish their national myths too much to want mere facts, or even assertions of historical doubt, to besmirch them. Max Hastings
Max Hastings
Did you know?
Since the prefix be- in besmirch means "to make or cause to be," when you besmirch something, you cause it to have a smirch. What's a smirch? A smirch is a stain, and to smirch something is to stain it or make it dirty. By extension, the verb smirch came to mean "to bring discredit or disgrace on." Smirch and besmirch, then, mean essentially the same thing.
Synonyms
- befoul
- begrime
- bemire
- blacken
- daub
- dirty
- distain [archaic]
- foul
- gaum [dialect]
- grime
- mire
- muck
- muddy
- smirch
- smudge
- soil
- stain
- sully
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
inconsiderately besmirched the carpet with their dirty feet
Recent Examples on the Web Yet anyone concerned that the result might besmirch their memory of Heat can rest easy. Clark Collis, EW.com, 9 Aug. 2022 Do Democrats want to unfairly besmirch the entire GOP with the Jan. 6 disgrace, while distracting voters from 8.6% inflation and $5-a-gallon gasoline? The Editorial Board, WSJ, 10 June 2022 Imagine allowing a breed of humanity as vulgar as actors (wink-wink) to besmirch their palace beautiful. Justin Changfilm Critic, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2022 And a failure to fulfill the now apparently near-impossible tasks of evacuating all the Afghan translators, workers and fixers on whom the US relied and who now face Taliban retribution would besmirch America’s conscience and global reputation. Stephen Collinson, CNN, 16 Aug. 2021 In 14 minutes of chitchat with Nelson, the most (in)famous high school football coach in America managed to besmirch almost everything beloved in the South and, in doing so, ended up on administrative leave. New York Times, 12 Apr. 2021 The head of the Suez Canal Authority at the time dismissed his remarks as an attempt to besmirch Egypt’s reputation. Rory Jones, WSJ, 31 Mar. 2021 Yet Judge Sullivan chose to besmirch both the Barr effort and the judiciary by matching James Comey’s FBI for Trump Derangement Syndrome. Kimberley A. Strassel, WSJ, 10 Dec. 2020 This culture of indifference is only reinforced when men such as Simmons receive carte blanche to publicly besmirch their accusers—especially under the guise of social justice. Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 2 July 2020 See More
Clark Collis, EW.com, 9 Aug. 2022 Do Democrats want to unfairly besmirch the entire GOP with the Jan. 6 disgrace, while distracting voters from 8.6% inflation and $5-a-gallon gasoline? The Editorial Board, WSJ, 10 June 2022 Imagine allowing a breed of humanity as vulgar as actors (wink-wink) to besmirch their palace beautiful. Justin Changfilm Critic, Los Angeles Times, 19 May 2022 And a failure to fulfill the now apparently near-impossible tasks of evacuating all the Afghan translators, workers and fixers on whom the US relied and who now face Taliban retribution would besmirch America’s conscience and global reputation. Stephen Collinson, CNN, 16 Aug. 2021 In 14 minutes of chitchat with Nelson, the most (in)famous high school football coach in America managed to besmirch almost everything beloved in the South and, in doing so, ended up on administrative leave. New York Times, 12 Apr. 2021 The head of the Suez Canal Authority at the time dismissed his remarks as an attempt to besmirch Egypt’s reputation. Rory Jones, WSJ, 31 Mar. 2021 Yet Judge Sullivan chose to besmirch both the Barr effort and the judiciary by matching James Comey’s FBI for Trump Derangement Syndrome. Kimberley A. Strassel, WSJ, 10 Dec. 2020 This culture of indifference is only reinforced when men such as Simmons receive carte blanche to publicly besmirch their accusers—especially under the guise of social justice. Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 2 July 2020 See More Word History
First Known Use
1604, in the meaning defined above
besmirching
verb
as in staining
to make dirty inconsiderately besmirched the carpet with their dirty feet Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- staining
- blackening
- dirtying
- sullying
- messing
- soiling
- muddying
- mucking
- befouling
- smudging
- daubing
- griming
- smirching
- polluting
- miring
- tainting
- begriming
- contaminating
- defiling
- fouling
- distaining
- gauming
- bemiring
- discoloring
- disarranging
- muddling
- disordering
- jumbling
- draggling
- disheveling
- confusing
- disarraying
- dishevelling
- crocking
- collying
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- cleaning
- cleansing
- wiping
- purging
- purifying
- decontaminating
- sweeping
- scrubbing
- sanitizing
- washing
- brushing
- disinfecting
- dusting
- rinsing
- scouring
- mopping
- renewing
- brightening
- laundering
- freshening
- deodorizing
- straightening (up)
- sprucing (up)
- dry-cleaning
- tidying (up)