1
as in to stain
to make dirty
unsightly mud and slush befouls the family car every winter
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2
as in to pollute
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
the enemy had befouled the water in all of the area's wells with animal carcasses
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Examples of befoul in a Sentence
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Hundreds of women will dress up against the cold on a gray November day to protest a pipeline that could befoul their water and will almost certainly lead to the final befouling of the planet.
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Washington Post, 20 Apr. 2022
But dip even the most blood-befouled corset in a tub of warm water and swish, swish, swish — Lucy’s lace nightgown, or a doctor’s lab coat — is restored to its original snowy sheen.
—Mary Carole McCauley, baltimoresun.com, 24 Oct. 2019
The poison of authoritarianism is as pervasive as the cloud of sulfur dioxide that befouled the air in East Germany.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 26 Feb. 2020
Michael Kuta, 26, of the 700 block of South Addison Avenue, Villa Park, was cited for disorderly conduct – befouling property at 1:15 a.m. Nov. 28 after he was observed urinating on bushes in the 100 block of South York Street.
—Graydon Megan, chicagotribune.com, 6 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for befoul 
Washington Post, 20 Apr. 2022
But dip even the most blood-befouled corset in a tub of warm water and swish, swish, swish — Lucy’s lace nightgown, or a doctor’s lab coat — is restored to its original snowy sheen.
—Mary Carole McCauley, baltimoresun.com, 24 Oct. 2019
The poison of authoritarianism is as pervasive as the cloud of sulfur dioxide that befouled the air in East Germany.
—Kyle Smith, National Review, 26 Feb. 2020
Michael Kuta, 26, of the 700 block of South Addison Avenue, Villa Park, was cited for disorderly conduct – befouling property at 1:15 a.m. Nov. 28 after he was observed urinating on bushes in the 100 block of South York Street.
—Graydon Megan, chicagotribune.com, 6 Dec. 2019
See all Example Sentences for befoul
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'befoul.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Befoul.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/befoul. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
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