as in unpolished
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as in marred
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
a false accusation that nonetheless tarnished her reputation
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Recent Examples of tarnished
Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 11 June 2026
From a low-security prison in California, the former Democratic megadonor has been seeking to reshape his tarnished image while making public declarations in support of the president.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 June 2026
The Golden State’s reputation for its business climate is a bit tarnished.
—Doug McCauley, Oc Register, 27 May 2026
Despite its tarnished early service history ‒ the two crashes combined killed 346 people ‒ the MAX has proven a capable plane.
—Zach Wichter, USA Today, 20 May 2026
The sprawling case, which has thousands of court filings, is a battle of salvaging tarnished reputations.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 28 Apr. 2026
Try The Polish Test Use a clean, soft cloth to rub the tarnished silver.
—Lauren Wicks, Southern Living, 15 Apr. 2026
Moonlight carved out his silhouette and sparked a tarnished reflection off the gun in his right hand.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
Things keep lining up against Microsoft , with all roads leading back to the company's tarnished standing as an artificial intelligence leader and how that could impact the company's Azure cloud growth.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 23 Mar. 2026
Matt Egan, CNN Money, 16 June 2026
Throughout this process, innocent people had their reputations unfairly tarnished.
—Janelle Ash , Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2026
Throughout this process, innocent people had their reputations unfairly tarnished.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 12 June 2026
Sadly, a small but loud minority of supporters are not listening, which means Mexico’s reputation will continue to be tarnished and the federation will keep receiving fines.
—Matt Slater, New York Times, 2 June 2026
Inevitably, Kreutzer’s film was tarnished by association and even withdrawn from cinemas.
—Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 15 May 2026
But the Conservatives are tarnished by 14 tumultuous years in power that ended in 2024.
—ABC News, 5 May 2026
And a scandal that sees Runway fooled by (LOL) a fast fashion brand with sweatshop ties as tarnished the mag’s sterling reputation.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2026
Not tarnished because of this conflict.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
As the New York Times reports, Gates is seemingly pulling out all the stops to rescue his tarnished brand, a fall from grace that’s putting his $89 billion global health fund, the Gates Foundation, in jeopardy.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 11 June 2026
From a low-security prison in California, the former Democratic megadonor has been seeking to reshape his tarnished image while making public declarations in support of the president.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 June 2026
The Golden State’s reputation for its business climate is a bit tarnished.
—Doug McCauley, Oc Register, 27 May 2026
Despite its tarnished early service history ‒ the two crashes combined killed 346 people ‒ the MAX has proven a capable plane.
—Zach Wichter, USA Today, 20 May 2026
The sprawling case, which has thousands of court filings, is a battle of salvaging tarnished reputations.
—Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 28 Apr. 2026
Try The Polish Test Use a clean, soft cloth to rub the tarnished silver.
—Lauren Wicks, Southern Living, 15 Apr. 2026
Moonlight carved out his silhouette and sparked a tarnished reflection off the gun in his right hand.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
Things keep lining up against Microsoft , with all roads leading back to the company's tarnished standing as an artificial intelligence leader and how that could impact the company's Azure cloud growth.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 23 Mar. 2026
Verb
New York — Kevin Warsh’s dream of becoming Federal Reserve chairman was nearly tarnished by the specter of having to confront simultaneous and conflicting challenges brewing in the US economy.
—Matt Egan, CNN Money, 16 June 2026
Throughout this process, innocent people had their reputations unfairly tarnished.
—Janelle Ash , Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 13 June 2026
Throughout this process, innocent people had their reputations unfairly tarnished.
—Gene Maddaus, Variety, 12 June 2026
Sadly, a small but loud minority of supporters are not listening, which means Mexico’s reputation will continue to be tarnished and the federation will keep receiving fines.
—Matt Slater, New York Times, 2 June 2026
Inevitably, Kreutzer’s film was tarnished by association and even withdrawn from cinemas.
—Stephanie Bunbury, Deadline, 15 May 2026
But the Conservatives are tarnished by 14 tumultuous years in power that ended in 2024.
—ABC News, 5 May 2026
And a scandal that sees Runway fooled by (LOL) a fast fashion brand with sweatshop ties as tarnished the mag’s sterling reputation.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 29 Apr. 2026
Not tarnished because of this conflict.
—Mohammed Sergie, semafor.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tarnished
Adjective
-
Low-quality decor like plastic plants or cheap rugs can make a space feel cluttered and unpolished.—
Jane Kim,
The Spruce,
16 June 2026
-
Dog Day Afternoon is a definitive '70s film, with its gritty, unpolished vision of a restless New York and a dark sense of humor in its portrayal of a heist gone horribly wrong.—
Eric Farwell,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 June 2026
Verb
-
The Toronto Blue Jays' 2026 season has been marred by injuries, with veteran pitcher Max Scherzer facing significant setbacks.—
Peter Chawaga,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2026
-
As Bloomberg recently reported, brides are buying $14 spells from witches on Etsy to ensure that their $100,000 weddings are not marred by blizzards or downpours.—
Maureen Dowd,
Mercury News,
18 June 2026
Adjective
-
Melanie Hamrick, a former member of American Ballet Theatre’s corps de ballet, was leaping down a dingy stairwell in the company’s lower-Broadway rehearsal building recently.—
Bob Morris,
New Yorker,
15 June 2026
-
Even though modern machines and detergents have taken most of the workload out of the task, there are still some outdated laundry habits that may leave your clothes and linens looking dingy, smelling less than fresh, and feeling scratchy.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
12 June 2026
Verb
-
Troupis and Roman both filed motions seeking to relocate the trial from Dane County, which includes Madison, to neighboring Jefferson County, saying negative publicity had tainted the potential jury pool.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
Troupis and Roman both filed motions seeking to relocate the trial from Dane County, which includes Madison, to neighboring Jefferson County, saying negative publicity had tainted the potential jury pool.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 June 2026
Adjective
-
Even as the United States expanded its rule, there always remained a dim sense that an Empire of Liberty was a contradiction.—
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
Vanity Fair,
15 June 2026
-
To be fair, the Mission 1 Pro and Action 5 Pro both show a soft image without a lot of detail in this extreme low light scenario, a full-frame camera is a better tool for video in minimal light, but among action cameras the Mission 1 Pro is a standout for dim light.—
Jim Fisher,
PC Magazine,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
Opt for a material that’s white washed or stained for a farmhouse look.—
Rachel Fletcher,
Architectural Digest,
19 June 2026
-
Crime scene technicians called in to help execute a search warrant reported observing blood spattered all over Mao’s bedroom, and a machete and two dumbbells stained with blood.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
17 June 2026
Adjective
-
Speaking of public resources, several people — including reader Cheryl and columnist Scott — wanted to know if any candidates have plans to expand this region’s notoriously lackluster bus system, Lynx.—
Scott Maxwell,
The Orlando Sentinel,
19 June 2026
-
Brazil will try to improve following a lackluster 1-1 draw against Morocco last week.—
David Brandt,
Chicago Tribune,
19 June 2026
Verb
-
Last year, harmful algae blooming off Southern California poisoned hundreds of dolphins and sea lions off Santa Barbara, Ventura, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties, causing strandings along popular beaches.—
Paul Rogers,
Mercury News,
15 June 2026
-
Thalib, a leading human rights activist and founder of KontraS who was poisoned with arsenic on a flight to Amsterdam.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
10 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tarnished.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tarnished. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
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