BESMIRCHED Synonyms: 145 Similar and Opposite Words

besmirched 1 of 2

adjective

as in stained

not clean wiped the toddler's besmirched face with a damp cloth

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

besmirched

2 of 2

verb

past tense of besmirch

as in blackened

to make dirty inconsiderately besmirched the carpet with their dirty feet

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of besmirched

Verb

Our nation’s capital is besmirched, on his say-so, with signs and banners bearing his likeness and name. — Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Aug. 2026 Bryna Laub, editor of Daytime Serial Newsletter, felt the show besmirched the sanctity of soaps and contributed to the broader currents of shame surrounding the genre. — Literary Hub, 18 May 2026 And thus one of the more wholesome and fun events in the White House calendar was besmirched by a man who simply cannot stop with the zero-sum partisan nonsense even when surrounded by impressionable young faces. — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 8 Apr. 2026 Trump has focused on tourist-friendly areas being besmirched by crime. — Niall Stanage, The Hill, 11 Aug. 2025 These hardy souls, largely indifferent to political and economic turbulence, were the mainstay of the tourist economy during the civil war that besmirched the lives of an entire generation from the 1980s on. — Chandrahas Choudhury, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Mar. 2024

Recent Examples of Synonyms for besmirched

Adjective

Pushing those briars aside revealed a single splinter of stained glass, bright as a ruby and warm as blood.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
With stained glass, the gray light from outside is filtered through beautiful pieces of glass.

— Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of stained

Verb

On Tuesday, a silver cross on a long chain hung from the pine tree’s bark, which was peeling and blackened from the blaze.

— Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2026
The blaze blackened about 25 acres near the Getty Center before firefighters got the upper hand on it.

— Tom Tapp, Deadline, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of blackened

Adjective

Jurors heard testimony from three of Alsheikh’s victims who said they were packed into small, filthy, cold, wet cells that were infested with insects and other vermin.

— Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026
That praise rings true more than a decade later thanks to joke after filthy joke, cameo after foul-mouthed cameo, scare after genuine scare.

— Sara Netzley, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of filthy

Verb

When stormwater dirtied by road runoff, failing septic tanks and fertilizer sullied crystal-clear rivers and lakes, and nobody cared.

— Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Jan. 2026
Garments can be dirtied again by the elements if air-dried outside.

— Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Dec. 2025

Definition of dirtied

Adjective

The soft, muddy earth created the conditions needed for the dinosaur tracks to be buried, brought back to the surface and exposed by erosion.

— Taylor Nicioli, CNN Money, 23 Sep. 2026
As a result, the Great Lawn had to be shut down two months ealier for repairs and resodding after tens of thousands of concertgoers stomped it into a muddy mess.

— Lincoln Anderson, New York Daily News, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of muddy

Verb

Shortly after Palace’s next match had finished, a defeat by Everton on the opening weekend of the new season, his reputation among the supporters had been sullied again.

— Matt Woosnam, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Such shenanigans are more or less expected, and certainly haven’t forever sullied the American soccer fan base, at least here at home.

— Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 7 July 2026

Definition of sullied

Adjective

The hot and dusty city streets were bathed in decorative green light to celebrate National Day, as hundreds of electronic billboards projected the sword and script of the Saudi flag, shown fluttering as if caught in a breeze.

— Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 24 Sep. 2026
Raghubir Goyal, an eccentric veteran of the briefing room who serves as White House correspondent for India Globe, a newspaper that appears to no longer exist, stood at the press secretary’s dusty podium and filmed selfie videos.

— Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of dusty

Adjective

Cans, water containers, mattresses and crosses - seeming evidence of the home's former Christian occupants — lay scattered across a dirty room.

— Diego Ibarra Sánchez, NPR, 19 Sep. 2026
The lingerers brought their dirty dishes to the bus tub, wiped their mouths one last time with a napkin, and waved to Cleo, their faces saying, Nice job!

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of dirty

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“Besmirched.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besmirched. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of besmirched

adjective

verb

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