as in canyon
a narrow opening between hillsides or mountains that can be used for passage
the cattle, once they were cornered in the defile, were quickly rounded up
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to pollute
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
supplies of meat that had been defiled by maggots
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to violate
to treat (a sacred place or object) shamefully or with great disrespect
art conservators were careful not to do anything that might defile the holy relic
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of defile
Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 21 Mar. 2022
Between Evergreen and Conifer Maxwell Creek slides north through a trailside defile, trembles through boulders in watery segments, and slips over black granite blocks in shimmery sheets at Maxwell Falls.
—Danika Worthington, The Know, 19 June 2020
Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
The 37-year-old former Fairfax County police recruit has since been indicted on charges of first-degree murder and physically defiling a dead body.
—Muri Assunção, New York Daily News, 4 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for defile
Noun
Almost 200 species of birds have been seen in high-walled Ramsey Canyon, a lush defile in the Huachuca Mountains south of Sierra Vista that's managed by the Nature Conservancy.
—Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 21 Mar. 2022
Between Evergreen and Conifer Maxwell Creek slides north through a trailside defile, trembles through boulders in watery segments, and slips over black granite blocks in shimmery sheets at Maxwell Falls.
—Danika Worthington, The Know, 19 June 2020
Verb
Naresh Bhatt was arrested in August on a charge of concealing a dead body and now faces charges of murder and physically defiling a dead body after police found evidence in their Manassas Park home that her body was dismembered.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 29 Jan. 2025
The 37-year-old former Fairfax County police recruit has since been indicted on charges of first-degree murder and physically defiling a dead body.
—Muri Assunção, New York Daily News, 4 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for defile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defile
Noun
-
That initial drive was merely the opening act for the hike-able mesas, canyons, and sky-high sandstone beyond the visitor center gates.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Travel + Leisure,
17 May 2025
-
The octopus inhabits underwater canyons at depths of 3,400 to 5,000 feet.—
Real-Time news team,
Miami Herald,
16 May 2025
Verb
-
The intent, the critics have said, is in fact to stifle findings about the noxious content that is increasingly polluting social media and political discourse.—
Steven Lee Myers,
New York Times,
15 May 2025
-
Leaks from this antiquated sewer system are polluting Rock Creek and threaten the public health of all those who come in contact with it.—
Dan Gooding
Gabe Whisnant,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 May 2025
Verb
-
Penalties for violating the new rule can exceed $50,000.—
Monica Pitrelli,Bella Stoddart,
CNBC,
12 May 2025
-
That was when the makers, Epic Games, included a direct payment option into the app, which violated Apple’s rules.—
David Phelan,
Forbes.com,
12 May 2025
Noun
-
Its red rock ranges and fossil-laden gorges preserve a record that dates back more than 3.6 billion years, well before tectonic plates began to shape continents.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2025
-
Horsetail Falls Further up the gorge, Horsetail Falls spills 176 feet down a sheer rock face.—
Evie Carrick,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Years later, the toxic chemicals have poisoned Hong-rang’s body.—
Kayti Burt,
Time,
16 May 2025
-
And two, baking soda is an indiscriminate weed killer that poisons the soil.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
16 May 2025
Verb
-
These things could be coincidental, or could, as the main character suggests, be the work of fairies upset that their pools were desecrated in this way.—
Deborah Treisman,
New Yorker,
18 May 2025
-
The audit also noted a Jewish cemetery in Waterbury that was vandalized with more than 12 gravestones desecrated.—
Sean Krofssik,
Hartford Courant,
22 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
When camping in an open environment, select a campsite in a valley, ravine, or low region.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
15 May 2025
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That includes Tom Cruise, as covert CIA division agent Ethan Hunt, riding a motorcycle off a 4,000-foot cliff and BASE jumping the final 500 feet of a ravine, or the breathless climactic train mayhem in 2023’s Dead Reckoning, the opening installment of this two-parter.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
Cades Cove Feel enveloped in mountain majesty by visiting this scenic valley in Townsend, Tennessee that’s fully surrounded by the mountain range.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
18 May 2025
-
When camping in an open environment, select a campsite in a valley, ravine, or low region.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
17 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Defile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defile. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
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