vitiate

vitiate

verb

Definition of VITIATE

1

to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable <believed that luxury vitiates even the most principled person>

Synonyms blemish, darken, mar, poison, spoil, stain, tarnish, touch, vitiate

Related Words begrime, besmear, besmirch, blacken, blur, cloud, dirty, discolor, pollute, smear, smirch, smudge, smut, soil, sully, tar; abase, cheapen, debase, degrade, demean, discredit, disgrace, dishonor, foul, lower, shame, sink; bastardize, corrupt, debauch, demoralize, deprave, pervert, subvert; color, distort, twist

Near Antonyms cleanse, purify; dignify, elevate, ennoble, enshrine, glorify, hallow, magnify, uplift

2

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of <numerous grammatical errors vitiate the effectiveness of your writing>

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

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

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

3

to lower in character, dignity, or quality <a penchant for coarse language vitiates what is otherwise a refined literary style>

Synonyms abase, bastardize, canker, cheapen, corrupt, debauch, degrade, demean, demoralize, deprave, deteriorate, lessen, pervert, poison, profane, prostitute, subvert, vitiate, warp

Related Words befoul, begrime, contaminate, defile, dilute, dirty, pollute, taint, thin, water down, weaken; descend; disgrace, dishonor, humble, humiliate, shame, take down; blemish, damage, deface, destroy, flaw, harm, hurt, impair, mar, ruin, spoil, stain, tarnish, wreck; depreciate, downgrade

Near Antonyms dignify, exalt, honor; ameliorate, amend, better, enhance, enrich, improve, meliorate, perfect; clarify, clean, cleanse, purify, refine, restore; respect

Antonyms elevate, ennoble, uplift