disfigure

dis·fig·ure

transitive verb \dis-ˈfi-gyər, especially British -ˈfi-gər\

Definition of DISFIGURE

1

: to impair (as in beauty) by deep and persistent injuries <a face disfigured by smallpox>

2

obsolete : disguise

— dis·fig·ure·ment \-mənt\ noun

Examples of DISFIGURE

1. His face was disfigured by a scar.
2. <the statue was seriously disfigured by falling rubble during the earthquake>

Origin of DISFIGURE

Middle English, from Anglo-French desfigurer, from des- dis- + figure figure

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to DISFIGURE

Synonyms

blemish, bloody, break, compromise, crab, cripple, cross (up), deface, damage, endamage, flaw, harm, hurt, impair, injure, mar, spoil, vitiate

Antonyms

doctor, fix, mend, patch, rebuild, recondition, reconstruct, renovate, repair, revamp

Related Words

deteriorate, enervate, enfeeble, undermine, weaken; erode, scour, wash out, wear (away); blight, tarnish; dent, ding, dint; botch, gum (up), queer; lacerate, wound; disable, hamstring, lame, maim, mangle, mutilate, torment, torture; annihilate, bang up, bash, batter, clobber, crush, dash, decimate, demolish, desolate, destroy, devastate, do in, pulverize, raze, ruin, scourge, shatter, smash, tear down, total, waste, wipe out, wreck

Near Antonyms

cure, heal, help, rectify, rehabilitate, remedy; edit, remodel, revise; ameliorate, better, enhance, enrich, improve, meliorate, perfect, refine