Synonyms of defiles

defiles 1 of 2

noun

plural of defile

as in ravines

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

• ravines
• canyons
• gorges
• valleys
• passes
• gulches
• gaps
• saddles
• cols
• crevices
• abysses
• kloofs
• trenches
• linns
• flumes
• couloirs
• notches
• gills
• fissures
• clefts
• glens
• chasms
• cirques
• vales
• crevasses
• gulfs
• basins
• gutters
• dales
• hollows
• gullies
• washes
• dells
• combes
• kettles
• draws
• arroyos
• floodplains
• coulees
• cwms
• barrancas
• wadis
• nullahs
• troughs
• shut-ins

defiles

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of defile

1

as in pollutes

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

• pollutes
• poisons
• taints
• contaminates
• infects
• befouls
• sullies
• dirties
• besmirches
• soils
• fouls
• stains
• dilutes
• blackens
• corrupts
• rots
• adulterates
• muddies
• smudges
• mires
• spoils
• fouls up
• waters down
• grimes
• begrimes
• smirches
• doctors

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• purifies
• cleans
• clarifies
• cleanses
• clears
• distills
• purges
• filters
• decontaminates
• sterilizes
• disinfects
• sanitizes

2

as in violates

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

• violates
• desecrates
• destroys
• profanes
• ravages
• demolishes
• ruins
• taints
• raids
• blasphemes
• pollutes
• insults
• robs
• contaminates
• sullies
• offends
• defames
• plunders
• curses
• soils
• devastates
• swears
• befouls
• decimates
• despoils
• desolates
• wrecks
• affronts
• annihilates
• poisons
• desacralizes
• pillages
• outrages
• wastes
• deconsecrates
• loots
• desanctifies
• razes
• strips
• spoils
• ransacks
• sacks
• fouls
• crushes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• dedicates
• blesses
• consecrates
• sanctifies
• respects
• honors
• purifies
• cleanses
• hallows
• purges

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of defiles

Verb

Through the ball’s circular shape and its lack of color, the painting knowingly winks at Piet Mondrian’s Composition 10 in Black and White (1915), then defiles the Dutch modernist’s aesthetic purity. — Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 7 Oct. 2026

Moral and intellectual descent is inherent in a political project that sets out to undermine liberal democracy, reject the inclusive egalitarianism of modern America, find enemies to demonize, and heroize a leader who defiles common decency. — George Packer, The Atlantic, 24 Nov. 2025