Synonyms of poisoning

poisoning

verb

present participle of poison

1

as in tainting

to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable

poisoning the minds of impressionable children with ethnic hatred

Synonyms & Similar Words

• tainting
• spoiling
• marring
• staining
• darkening
• touching
• tarnishing
• blackening
• lowering
• polluting
• discrediting
• degrading
• corrupting
• vitiating
• smearing
• distorting
• blemishing
• soiling
• blurring
• discoloring
• dirtying
• sullying
• clouding
• disgracing
• besmirching
• shaming
• dishonoring
• sinking
• fouling
• smudging
• tarring
• perverting
• debasing
• subverting
• debauching
• cheapening
• depraving
• twisting
• besmearing
• demeaning
• smirching
• smutting
• demoralizing
• abasing
• coloring
• begriming
• bastardizing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cleansing
• purifying
• elevating
• magnifying
• uplifting
• glorifying
• ennobling
• dignifying
• enshrining
• hallowing

2

as in polluting

to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable

exhaust fumes poisoning the air

Synonyms & Similar Words

• polluting
• contaminating
• tainting
• infecting
• defiling
• befouling
• fouling
• staining
• diluting
• soiling
• dirtying
• rotting
• blackening
• sullying
• besmirching
• corrupting
• smudging
• spoiling
• adulterating
• muddying
• miring
• fouling up
• griming
• watering down
• smirching
• doctoring
• begriming

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cleaning
• purifying
• cleansing
• purging
• clearing
• clarifying
• distilling
• filtering
• decontaminating
• sterilizing
• disinfecting
• sanitizing

3

as in degrading

to lower in character, dignity, or quality

this party partisanship poisons the national debate we should be having about this urgent problem

Synonyms & Similar Words

• degrading
• corrupting
• weakening
• deteriorating
• damaging
• diluting
• destroying
• subverting
• humiliating
• debauching
• polluting
• depraving
• ruining
• perverting
• debasing
• contaminating
• cankering
• tainting
• lessening
• prostituting
• disgracing
• warping
• cheapening
• demoralizing
• harming
• demeaning
• vitiating
• marring
• bastardizing
• abasing
• profaning
• shaming
• hurting
• thinning
• wrecking
• impairing
• dirtying
• spoiling
• defiling
• watering down
• dishonoring
• tarnishing
• humbling
• staining
• befouling
• descending
• defacing
• downgrading
• begriming
• flawing
• taking down
• depreciating
• blemishing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• improving
• elevating
• uplifting
• honoring
• enhancing
• exalting
• cleaning
• enriching
• ameliorating
• amending
• ennobling
• perfecting
• restoring
• bettering
• purifying
• cleansing
• refining
• dignifying
• respecting
• clarifying
• meliorating

4

as in turning

to cause to have often negative opinions formed without sufficient knowledge

malicious rumors had poisoned many church members against the new pastor

Synonyms & Similar Words

• turning
• convincing
• persuading
• biasing
• prejudicing
• influencing
• disposing
• predisposing
• inclining
• suggesting
• prepossessing

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of poisoning

While the mines themselves trample landscapes, the mercury used in the process is poisoning communities. — ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026

Women in ancient Rome used toad secretions to murder their husbands; 16th-century Italian chemists laced salts with toad toxins for poisoning the food of enemies. — Kimon De Greef, Longreads, 4 Aug. 2026

Historically used in dry cleaning or to degrease metal parts, the chemicals leaked into the base’s wells, poisoning the drinking water. — Wuft News, Miami Herald, 29 July 2026

In the past, farmers have been suspected of deliberately poisoning elephants to prevent them from eating crops. — CBS News, 29 July 2026

What looks like a matter of simple intellectual convenience is more a case of poisoning the water hole. — Richard Lansdown, The New York Review of Books, 25 June 2026

One of Robinson's attorneys, Kathryn Nester, also represented Kouri Richins, who was convicted of poisoning her husband, Eric Richins, in March 2022. — Adam Sabes, FOXNews.com, 23 June 2026

Lewis was accused of poisoning two white female housemates, assaulted by a white mob in response to the charge, and acquitted in court, only to then be accused of stealing art supplies and prohibited from reënrolling. — Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 8 June 2026

It was also used in a separate supply-chain attack poisoning dozens of Red Hat packages. — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 8 June 2026