mar

1 of 4

verb

ˈmär 

marred; marring

transitive verb

1

: to ruin or diminish the perfection or wholeness of : spoil

whose life has been marred by problems with drugs

—William Plummer

their relations were marred by disgraceful conflicts

—L. W. Beck

the race was marred by a 23-car pileup

—Mike Harris

2

archaic

a

: to inflict serious bodily harm on

b

: destroy

mar

2 of 4

noun

: something that mars : blemish

mar

3 of 4

abbreviation (1)

maritime

Mar

4 of 4

abbreviation (2)

March

Synonyms

Verb

• taint
• spoil
• stain
• darken
• poison
• tarnish
• touch

Noun

• defect
• scar
• blotch
• mark
• stain

Choose the Right Synonym for mar

injure, harm, hurt, damage, impair, mar mean to affect injuriously.

injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success.

badly injured in an accident

harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss.

careful not to harm the animals

hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings.

hurt by their callous remarks

damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness.

a table damaged in shipping

impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution.

years of smoking had impaired his health

mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement.

the text is marred by many typos

Examples of mar in a Sentence

Verb

A large scar marred his face.

Her acting mars an otherwise great movie.

Noun

the Johnsons complained to the movers about broken dishes and mars on the furniture

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Protesters in Cameroon took to cities across the country days after President Paul Biya secured an extension to his 43-year rule in a process experts say was marred by irregularities. —Semafor Events, semafor.com, 3 Nov. 2025

Even now, plans are underway to determine how best to retire and deorbit the aging laboratory – which has been marred by air leaks and other issues – likely around 2030. —Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 2 Nov. 2025

Reuters — Police in Tanzania fired tear gas and gunshots on Thursday to disperse groups of protesters who returned to the streets a day after a general election marred by violent demonstrations, witnesses said. —Reuters 10 Hr Ago, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025

Confidence is also being marred by the fact that promises the shutdown will end soon have proved empty. —Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Verb and Noun

Middle English marren, from Old English mierran to obstruct, waste; akin to Old High German merren to obstruct

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1551, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for mar

• ar
• are
• bar
• barr
• car
• carr
• char
• charr
• czar
• far
• farre
• haar

Kids Definition

mar

verb

ˈmär

marred; marring

: to make a blemish on : spoil