-
Trending Now:
More Trending:
- scaramouch non sequitur admiral's mast calumny kakistocracy
- ALL
Definition of defile
defiled
;defiling
transitive verb
: to make unclean or impure: such asa : to corrupt the purity or perfection of : debase the countryside defiled by billboardsb : to violate the chastity or virginity of : deflowerc : to make physically unclean especially with something unpleasant or contaminating boots defiled with blood … I had never allowed anyone to smoke in the truck. Drunk as I was, I knew that I was betraying something by allowing him to defile the truck's interior. — Patrick Moored : to violate the sanctity of : desecrate defile a sanctuary went to jail for costuming themselves in the American flag and thus defiling it — James R. Gainese : sully, dishonor defile his reputation
People Are Reading
defile was our Word of the Day on 04/05/2017. Hear the podcast!
Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP
Recent Examples of defile from the Web
-
For the past decade, seeing women who look like me — Asian women — in sexual contexts has meant seeing women who look like me being abused, dominated, and defiled.
-
Defiled and broken as the once-great automobile capital can seem, the past five years have seen great progress.
-
According to the Associated Press, Ecclesia of Sinai, which is the parent company of both Azure Standard and Azure Farms, has cited religious beliefs for refusing to spray, including a biblical passage stating that the land should not be defiled.
-
Even so, the Pope disbanded the order since the whole heresy mess had defiled its name.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'defile'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of defile
Middle English, alteration (influenced by filen to defile, from Old English fȳlan) of defoilen to trample, defile, from Anglo-French defoiller, defuler, to trample, from de- + fuller, foller to trample, literally, to full — more at full
Synonym Discussion of defile
Definition of defile
geology
: a narrow passage (as between hills, rocks, or cliffs) : 1gorge … come to us from a narrow defile in the Pennine Alps between Switzerland and Italy, a place called the Great St. Bernard Pass. — Michael Olmert
Examples of defile in a Sentence
the cattle, once they were cornered in the defile, were quickly rounded up
Origin and Etymology of defile
French défilé, from past participle of défiler —see 3defile
Definition of defile
defiled
;defiling
military
intransitive verb
: to march off in a line … breaks out into a brave and glorious descripion of the forces, as they defiled through the principal gate of the city … — Washington Irving
Recent Examples of defile from the Web
-
For the past decade, seeing women who look like me — Asian women — in sexual contexts has meant seeing women who look like me being abused, dominated, and defiled.
-
Defiled and broken as the once-great automobile capital can seem, the past five years have seen great progress.
-
According to the Associated Press, Ecclesia of Sinai, which is the parent company of both Azure Standard and Azure Farms, has cited religious beliefs for refusing to spray, including a biblical passage stating that the land should not be defiled.
-
Even so, the Pope disbanded the order since the whole heresy mess had defiled its name.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'defile'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of defile
French défiler, from dé- de- + filer to move in a column — more at file
DEFILE Defined for English Language Learners
defile
playDefinition of defile for English Language Learners
-
: a narrow passage through mountains
Law Dictionary
Learn More about defile
-
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for defile Spanish Central: Translation of defile Nglish: Translation of defile for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of defile for Arabic speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up defile? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!