as in staining
to make dirty
people that sully our state parks with their trash a once-gleaming marble interior sullied by decades of exposure to cigarette smoke
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as in contamination
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Recent Examples of sullying
Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 30 Aug. 2025
Noun
The problem is, people were drinking a lot of bad ones, sullying their opinion of the drink.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 30 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sullying
Verb
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Remove any heavy objects from the sides of your tub, as these items can cause chips or cracking that can contribute to staining.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
28 Oct. 2025
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Additionally, these shoes are machine washable, so don’t worry about staining the gorgeous light pink shoes on your next adventure!—
Caroline Hughes,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This could include, but is not limited to, major vermin contamination.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
31 Oct. 2025
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Additionally, various sanitation deficiencies such as old food residue on equipment, lack of proper glove use during food preparation, and pest contamination, city officials said.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
High-Heat-Safe Alternatives While enameled cast-iron cookware is excellent to use for braising, roasting, baking, or gentle stovetop cooking, certain high heat applications like searing steak or blackening fish are best done in other types of pans, like traditional cast iron or stainless steel.—
Katie Rosenhouse,
Southern Living,
10 Sep. 2025
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Each footstep sent up clouds of dust and ash, coating everything, including my mouth and teeth, in fine grit, blackening my snot and saliva.—
River Selby
August 25,
Literary Hub,
25 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
The indicators studied include extreme heat, weather events, food security, and pollution.—
Simmone Shah,
Time,
29 Oct. 2025
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Beyond the immediate area, grease can travel long distances through waterways, spreading pollution and damaging habitats far from the source.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Famously, the British press conspired to draw the dramatist’s name through the mud, besmirching his literary legacy for generations to follow.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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On TikTok, as The Washington Post has reported, some creators are making $5,000 a month using AI tools to write scripts and animate extremely dumb viral videos where old men talk about soiling themselves.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The last two seasons have proven that the team starts off slow, which ends up messing their chances of making the playoffs.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Beijing would be relieved that the United States is no longer muddying and in fact strengthening its nonsupport for independence.—
STEPHEN WERTHEIM,
Foreign Affairs,
28 Oct. 2025
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Further damning revelations are about to land, no doubt further muddying the waters.—
Christina Dugan Ramirez , Ashley Papa,
FOXNews.com,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sullying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sullying. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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