as in contaminated
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1
as in polluted
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
supplies of meat that had been defiled by maggots
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in violated
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
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Recent Examples of defiled
Literary Hub, 15 Jan. 2026
Their beautiful sanctuary has been defiled, and Emily is fired.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2025
After occupying forces defiled the temple, a small army led by Judah the Maccabee liberated the sanctuary.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 10 Dec. 2025
After recapturing Jerusalem’s holy temple, which had been defiled by the occupiers, the Maccabees searched for pure oil to light the menorah.
—Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer, 1 Dec. 2025
Friday’s incident isn’t the first time the church has been defiled by a member of the public in recent years.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
The seafood area’s ice machine was similarly defiled.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
Verb
The work of love, and the question of what happens when love is absent or defiled, became a central preoccupation.
—Literary Hub, 15 Jan. 2026
Their beautiful sanctuary has been defiled, and Emily is fired.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 18 Dec. 2025
After occupying forces defiled the temple, a small army led by Judah the Maccabee liberated the sanctuary.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 10 Dec. 2025
After recapturing Jerusalem’s holy temple, which had been defiled by the occupiers, the Maccabees searched for pure oil to light the menorah.
—Haadiza Ogwude, Cincinnati Enquirer, 1 Dec. 2025
Friday’s incident isn’t the first time the church has been defiled by a member of the public in recent years.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025
The seafood area’s ice machine was similarly defiled.
—David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defiled
Adjective
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Leptospirosis can also be found in contaminated water or soil and is spread by rodents.—
Michele Laufik,
Martha Stewart,
30 Jan. 2026
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Dealing with repairs because of the contaminated gas?—
Katie Langford,
Denver Post,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Public spaces are routinely polluted by blaring music packed with profanity and racial slurs, and no one thinks twice about it.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
31 Jan. 2026
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In November, detainees at the facility sued, alleging the facility is polluted by sewage leaks and insect infestations, and that detainees can’t get proper medical attention for life-threatening conditions.—
CalMatters,
Oc Register,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The underlying lawsuit, filed in December, alleges that federal officers violated the First and Fourth Amendment rights of six protesters.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
27 Jan. 2026
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The agency conceded that confidential data had been improperly accessed and shared and emphasized that the disclosures violated strict federal laws governing tax return confidentiality.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Chinese officials blamed the tainted test results on chemically altered food the athletes had consumed at the time.—
Washington Examiner Staff,
The Washington Examiner,
6 Feb. 2026
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But the process- judging by the emails- seemed to take too long and not be transparent enough for Colorado gasoline regulators, who asked Sinclair for days for a list of gas stations where the tainted fuel was sold.—
Brian Maass,
CBS News,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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To an extent Amorim was handed a chalice which has felt forever poisoned.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
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Prosecutors allege Richins poisoned her husband with a cocktail laced with illicit fentanyl while the couple was celebrating at their home in March 2022.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Officials determined that a total of 26 underground vaults and mausoleums were broken into or desecrated from November 2025 until the day Gerlach was caught.—
Alexandra Simon,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
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In 1993, White Supremacists in Billings desecrated a Jewish cemetery, sent bomb threats to a synagogue and threw a brick at a menorah in the window of a five-year-old Jewish boy.—
David Goldman,
CNN Money,
16 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Kanto practitioners believe that women cannot participate because, according to Japan's Shinto religion, women's blood from menstruation and childbirth is considered impure for the purpose of religious rituals.—
Anthony Kuhn,
NPR,
3 Nov. 2025
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Their inclusion underlines the wider context of the film, provoking the audience to hold these pure and impure images together.—
Jourdain Searles,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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One parent said her son missed seven days of school in January because of unclean conditions during flu and virus season.—
Bri Hatch,
Chalkbeat,
30 Jan. 2026
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The kitchen had unclean knife holders.—
Veronica Fernandez-Alvarado
January 30,
Sacbee.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Defiled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defiled. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
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