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blem·ish | \ ˈble-mish 
\
\blemished; blemishing; blemishes
Definition of blemish
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to spoil by a flaw
blemish
nounDefinition of blemish (Entry 2 of 2)
: a noticeable imperfection especially : one that seriously impairs appearance
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Synonyms for blemish
Synonyms: Verb
Synonyms: Noun
- blight,
- blotch,
- defect,
- deformity,
- disfigurement,
- excrescence,
- excrescency,
- fault,
- flaw,
- imperfection,
- mar,
- mark,
- pockmark,
- scar
Examples of blemish in a Sentence
Verb
A series of burn marks blemish the table's surface.
The incident blemished his reputation. Noun
The cream is supposed to prevent blemishes on the skin.
The table had a few scratches and minor blemishes.
The book fails to mention any of the organization's many blemishes.
The incident was a blemish on his record.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Verb The struggles of Jason Heyward (.252 OBP) and Kyle Schwarber (.304) to reach base from the top spot blemished their rebound seasons.
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Mark Gonzales, chicagotribune.com, "Should the Cubs re-sign Nicholas Castellanos? A look at the pros and cons of retaining the outfielder.," 8 Dec. 2019 Sunday's events came after a series of racist incidents that have blemished football this season.
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George Ramsay, CNN, "Chelsea defeats Tottenham in Premier League encounter tarnished by claims of racist abuse," 22 Dec. 2019 The boys soccer team of Solorio Academy High School is having another dream season, ranked among the state’s best with only a single overtime loss to blemish its record.
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John Keilman, chicagotribune.com, "Dreams of championships could be put on hold for high school athletes if CPS teachers go on strike," 10 Oct. 2019 His career has been blemished by the occasional controversy, football related and otherwise, which led to his early retirement from international football.
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SI.com, "Franck Ribéry: The Serial Entertainer Who Was Born to Win," 3 Oct. 2019 That extra conference game is one more opportunity each team in the conference has to blemish each other’s record.
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oregonlive, "Canzano: Oregon Ducks loss to Auburn hurts brand, but doesn’t kill Pac-12 playoff hopes," 3 Sep. 2019 Two-out walks and the RBI doubles by Jean Segura that followed, in the first and sixth innings, were Lucchesi’s only blemishes.
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San Diego Union-Tribune, "Birthday boy Hedges provides gift for Padres, a series win over Phillies," 18 Aug. 2019 The work was prompted by scenes of mold swirling in shower drains, blemishing walls and taking root in military clothing that appeared last week on a Facebook page, outraging viewers over the housing conditions at Lackland and across the Air Force.
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Sig Christenson, ExpressNews.com, "San Antonio dorm project part of Air Force’s war on mold," 1 Aug. 2019 As a few bad losses have blemished Minnesota’s record this season — 2-1 at New England, 2-0 at Chicago and 1-0 at Colorado — the Loons kept a bad Cincinnati team down.
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Andy Greder, Twin Cities, "Minnesota United offense comes alive in 7-1 thrashing of Cincinnati," 29 June 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun They're often packaged in plastic containers without labels or are handmade, and they're advertised to remove spots, wrinkles and blemishes.
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Scottie Andrew, CNN, "A woman was permanently injured from a skin-lightening cream tainted with an extremely toxic form of mercury - the first such case in the US," 26 Dec. 2019 Immediately each pellet starts veering off on a path of its own due to variable surface blemishes on the round pellet.
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Ron Spomer, Outdoor Life, "Shotgun Showdown: 12 Gauge vs. 20 Gauge vs. 28 Gauge," 11 Dec. 2019 Like the rest of us, Nina Dobrev has to contend with unexpected blemishes and the occasional bout of skin redness.
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Lauren Rearick, Teen Vogue, "Nina Dobrev Shared Her Secret for Combating Rosacea," 10 Dec. 2019 My new car’s panel gaps were more uniform, with no blemishes like an unpainted inner-trunk corner.
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Tribune News Service, cleveland, "Two motors are better than one for Tesla Model 3 Performance (auto review)," 23 Nov. 2019 Purchase pears that are fragrant and free of cuts or other blemishes that might cause them to rot.
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Becky Krystal, The Denver Post, "Pears are the unheralded stars of the fall fruit bounty. Here’s how to choose and use them.," 26 Oct. 2019 Regularly checking your credit report is the best way to spot identity theft, credit report errors or other blemishes that could affect your ability to buy a home.
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Shannon Cobb Evans, Houston Chronicle, "Realtor View: Mortgage preapproval makes offer more attractive," 19 Oct. 2019 My skincare routine started in my pre-teen years after a few too many pimples led to a daily application of blemish-fighting products powered by benzoyl peroxide.
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Braelyn Wood, Health.com, "Tatcha Water Cream Changed My Opinion on Moisturizer—And It’s on Sale Right Now," 17 Oct. 2019 City's only blemish came in a defeat at Spurs, while Arsenal would go on to finish outside the top four for the first time under Arsene Wenger despite their great start.
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SI.com, "How the Premier League Table Looked at After 8 Games in Each of the Last 7 Seasons," 14 Oct. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'blemish.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for blemish
blemish
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of blemish
(Entry 1 of 2)
: to make (something) imperfect or less beautiful : to hurt or damage the good condition of (something)
blemish
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of blemish (Entry 2 of 2)
: a mark that makes something imperfect or less beautiful : an unwanted mark on the surface of something
: a fact or event that causes people to respect someone or something less
See the full definition for blemish in the English Language Learners Dictionary
blemish
nounblem·ish | \ ˈblem-ish \
\Kids Definition of blemish
(Entry 1 of 2)
: a mark that makes something imperfect : an unwanted mark on a surface
blemish
verbblemished; blemishing
Kids Definition of blemish (Entry 2 of 2)
: to spoil by or as if by an ugly mark
A scratch blemished the table. The loss blemished their record.
blemish
nounblem·ish | \ ˈblem-ish \
\Medical Definition of blemish
: a mark of physical deformity or injury: as
a : any small mark on the skin (as a pimple or birthmark)
blemishes symptomatic of acne
b : a defect of an animal (as a horse) that detracts from its appearance but does not interfere with its usefulness
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Time Traveler for blemish
The first known use of blemish was in the 14th century
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