1
as in stains
to make dirty
blackened the towels with their dirty hands
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in libels
to make untrue and harmful statements about
the politician maliciously blackened his opponent's reputation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in darkens
to make dark, dim, or indistinct
thick smoke from the forest fires blackened the sky for many miles
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of blackens
As the salmon blackens in a skillet, the spices awaken, encrusting the fish in peppery piquant.
—
The Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 10 Feb. 2026
The Bon Appétit, Bon Appetit Magazine, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blackens
Verb
-
When that protective finish gets damaged, the toilet actually stains easier and is harder to keep clean over time.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
24 May 2026
-
What Sacks doesn’t get is that by financing and diplomatically supporting Israel, our country makes the crimes of the Israeli government possible, which stains America’s reputation in the world and drains our Treasury.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Pass the flame over the weed until the foliage darkens.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
16 May 2026
-
Its charming glow is often visible even before the sky fully darkens, which is so fitting and poetic when considering both the planetary and astrological essence of Venus, the goddess of love and beauty.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
6 May 2026
Verb
-
The adventurous actress dirties up her frock and face to play the village pariah, who reeks of fish and would be no man’s idea of a suitable wife, except perhaps the one-eyed bum who sleeps in the town square.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This chilling, starkly beautiful ambient piece draws Nebraska’s marginal whispers to the forefront and smears them across the picture plane.—
Sasha Geffen,
Pitchfork,
10 Mar. 2026
-
The five pieces offer, in turn, biomorphic hints of de Kooning, the ragged shapes of Clyfford Still, the bold geometries of Ellsworth Kelly, the paint smears of Gerhard Richter, and something that looks like toothpaste squeezed onto an orange peel.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
22 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
The narrow prenatal through postpartum window of care approach obscures the broader conditions shaping Black women’s health across their lifespan.—
Jallicia Jolly,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
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But that average obscures a steady fall from high deficits, as the decade began, to slight surpluses in fiscal years 1998 through 2001.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
31 May 2026
Verb
-
In its first go-round, Beef was ripe with curiosity about first-gen immigrant families and how the fear of leaving home stagnates and sullies us.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
16 Apr. 2026
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For all the ways Disney’s move sullies it with creatives in Hollywood, OpenAI’s new partner does the opposite — gives it massive cred in Silicon Valley.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Incompetent leadership humiliates us on the global stage.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
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And the President doesn’t seem to mind if Vance humiliates himself running errands.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
This beefy laptop blurs the line between an elite mobile gaming rig and a local-AI workstation.—
John Burek,
PC Magazine,
29 May 2026
-
That doctrine blurs the line between soldier and civilian.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Blackens.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blackens. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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