1
as in marring
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
criticism of her sister's singing that was tainted by envy a tendency toward conceitedness taints the athlete's status as a role model
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in polluting
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
smog has long tainted the air of the city, making it difficult to breathe
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tainting
At a time of intensifying divisions at home, a depiction of Ecuador could offer an Edenic, new-world landscape free from the partisanship tainting Church’s New England landscapes.
—
Sebastian Smee, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Now, streaming is tainting the postseason.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
Played by cisgender actress Kathleen Turner, Charles proved to be one of the more divisive characters from Friends, tainting its cultural legacy for some critics.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Infected people and dogs had to be prevented from tainting water sources.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
Judges typically allow for questioning of prospective jurors who may have a bias separately from the larger pool of jurors to avoid tainting others.
—John Diedrich, jsonline.com, 12 Dec. 2025
And there's also issues of tainting the jury pool.
—Stepheny Price , Michael Ruiz , Adam Sabes , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 11 Dec. 2025
But there’s a taste of ash tainting the popcorn thrills.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Nov. 2025
In its new filing, Mangione’s defense team expressed concern about tainting the pool of prospective jurors.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2025
Sebastian Smee, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Now, streaming is tainting the postseason.
—Troy Renck, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2026
Played by cisgender actress Kathleen Turner, Charles proved to be one of the more divisive characters from Friends, tainting its cultural legacy for some critics.
—Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 16 Feb. 2026
Infected people and dogs had to be prevented from tainting water sources.
—Dan Raby, CBS News, 30 Jan. 2026
Judges typically allow for questioning of prospective jurors who may have a bias separately from the larger pool of jurors to avoid tainting others.
—John Diedrich, jsonline.com, 12 Dec. 2025
And there's also issues of tainting the jury pool.
—Stepheny Price , Michael Ruiz , Adam Sabes , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 11 Dec. 2025
But there’s a taste of ash tainting the popcorn thrills.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 11 Nov. 2025
In its new filing, Mangione’s defense team expressed concern about tainting the pool of prospective jurors.
—Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tainting
Verb
-
Ancient lava fields can be seen as dark lunar maria marring the silvery lunar surface, which themselves are threaded with bright streaks of reflective debris strewn across the surface by violent asteroid strikes.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The demoralizing graffiti marring the main entrance to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints at 360 Lenox Ave.—
Colin Mixson,
New York Daily News,
12 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Engineers and safety experts are solving problems in a new technology that gets us off expensive and polluting fossil fuels.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
9 May 2026
-
Sunil Bector, an attorney with the Sierra Club, said that heavily polluting facilities will reap overlapping benefits from the assault on the Clean Air Act.—
Mark Olalde,
ProPublica,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
The Grizzlies scored seven times in the fifth inning, highlighted by home runs from Noah Litchfield, Zeke Munoz and Micah Mecucci, pushed across three more in the sixth and added a run in the seventh en route to a 12-8 Palomar League victory, spoiling Senior Day for the Falcons.—
John Maffei,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 May 2026
-
In the absence of fridges, fermenting, sun-drying, and preserving in salt were the only ways to keep food from spoiling.—
Boutheina Ben Salem,
Vogue,
8 May 2026
Verb
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The young woman who sojourned to Oberlin College, where she was wrongfully accused of poisoning her classmates and beaten half to death, who raised her hands in defense of herself, then went on to grip clay and rock and chisel to re-create visions of justice.—
Tyehimba Jess,
ARTnews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
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Protesters, however, say that HERC, which neighbors Target Field near the North Loop neighborhood, is responsible for essentially poisoning people who live nearby.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Leave enough room to mow around the tree, cut it back each season, and make any repairs to your fence, such as staining or board replacement.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
10 May 2026
-
Sometimes the warning sign is subtle staining — especially yellow or brown discoloration on walls or ceilings.—
Ryan Brennan
May 8,
Kansas City Star,
8 May 2026
Verb
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Over the years, villagers in Roko-Roko held demonstrations, accusing the mining company of clearing community farmland and contaminating a local spring.—
NPR,
NPR,
7 May 2026
-
Leaders said the leak resulted in 20,000 gallons of fuel being released, contaminating the soil outside the base at the waters of nearby Piscataway Creek.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
6 May 2026
Verb
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Thanks to a collaboration between Architecture Outfit and Damon Liss Design, the space holds a coastal luxury design where large windows naturally illuminate the room, darkening as day turns to night.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 May 2026
-
The industry is grappling with these logistical hurdles against a backdrop of darkening economic sentiment.—
Arthur Zaczkiewicz,
Footwear News,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Sycamore examines her complicated relationship with her late grandmother Gladys, a renowned Baltimore artist, and begins by literally touching her paintings and collages.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Apr. 2026
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To protect yourself, the CDC encourages washing your hands after touching birds, anything in their habitat, and their eggs.—
Addy Bink,
The Hill,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tainting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tainting. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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