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Definition of disfigure
transitive verb
1 : to impair (as in beauty) by deep and persistent injuries a face disfigured by smallpox
2 obsolete : disguise
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Examples of disfigure in a Sentence
His face was disfigured by a scar.
the statue was seriously disfigured by falling rubble during the earthquake
Recent Examples of disfigure from the Web
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In the third project, Empire’s Taraji P. Henson is slated to portray Till’s resilient mother, Mamie Till Bradley, who, by insisting that photos of her son’s disfigured body be published, served to galvanize the civil-rights movement.
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In January, a patient filed a medical malpractice lawsuit in Miami-Dade circuit court alleging that Omulepu permanently disfigured her during two cosmetic surgeries in 2015 — a breast augmentation and a revision.
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Most of the face is disfigured, and the legs are missing below the knee.
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Another rested beside his head: a point-blank shot at an already-dead man that would leave his face disfigured at an open-casket funeral.
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In one case, a patient accused Atogho of rushing to deliver her baby and using a vacuum device that disfigured her daughter, born in September 2013 with permanent damage to nerves in her shoulder and neck.
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It is thought to be derived from legends of pious women who disfigured themselves in order to protect their virginity.
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The giraffe—looking desiccated but not disfigured—was put on display in a clear, airless box.
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Conflict disfigures the region in profoundly troubling ways.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'disfigure'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of disfigure
Middle English, from Anglo-French desfigurer, from des- dis- + figure figure
DISFIGURE Defined for English Language Learners
disfigure
playDefinition of disfigure for English Language Learners
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: to spoil or damage the appearance of (something or someone)
DISFIGURE Defined for Kids
disfigure
playDefinition of disfigure for Students
disfigured
;disfiguring
: to spoil the looks of
Word Root of disfigure
The Latin word fingere, meaning “to shape” or “to mold,” and its form fictus give us the roots fig and fict. Words from the Latin fingere have something to do with shaping. The figure of something, especially a person's body, is its shape. To disfigure is to change the shape and ruin the looks of something. Fiction is something written that is not fact but is shaped by the imagination.
Learn More about disfigure
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for disfigure Spanish Central: Translation of disfigure Nglish: Translation of disfigure for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of disfigure for Arabic speakers
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