Synonyms of tarnished

tarnished 1 of 2

adjective

as in unpolished

Related Words

• unpolished
• lusterless
• dulled
• dingy
• dim
• lackluster
• drab
• muddy
• matte
• dull
• cloudy
• darkened
• gray
• pale
• dirty
• mousy
• obscured
• leaden
• dimmed
• flat
• dusky
• gloomy
• obscure
• black
• somber
• darkish
• palish
• murky
• dark
• pitch-black
• pitch-dark
• stygian
• tenebrous
• tenebrific

Dissimilar Words

• shiny
• rubbed
• glossy
• burnished
• lustrous
• sleek
• polished
• lacquered
• varnished
• glazed
• satin
• shining
• silky
• satiny
• silken
• gleaming
• buffed
• slippery
• slick
• shellacked
• sparkling
• glistening
• brilliant
• shimmering
• bright
• dazzling
• luminous
• radiant
• incandescent
• resplendent
• twinkling
• glowing
• effulgent
• lucid
• lucent
• lambent
• glittering
• glinting
• glimmering
• brightened
• gemmy
• refulgent
• scintillating
• beaming
• fulgent
• bedazzling
• candescent

tarnished

2 of 2

verb

past tense of tarnish

as in marred

to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable

a false accusation that nonetheless tarnished her reputation

Synonyms & Similar Words

• marred
• tainted
• stained
• poisoned
• spoiled
• darkened
• touched
• discredited
• distorted
• degraded
• blemished
• blackened
• smeared
• sullied
• lowered
• vitiated
• corrupted
• polluted
• soiled
• blurred
• disgraced
• discolored
• clouded
• smudged
• besmirched
• tarred
• dishonored
• shamed
• dirtied
• debased
• perverted
• smirched
• demeaned
• cheapened
• begrimed
• sank
• subverted
• besmeared
• twisted
• colored
• debauched
• smutted
• depraved
• fouled
• demoralized
• abased
• bastardized

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• purified
• cleansed
• elevated
• magnified
• enshrined
• dignified
• glorified
• uplifted
• ennobled
• hallowed

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of tarnished

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

And that would enhance his legacy, which has been tarnished lately because of Miami’s three straight lackluster seasons. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 14 July 2026

In a legal action, Harper could seek monetary damages by alleging that the video tarnished his reputation. — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2026

Also in 2018, Prince Mohammed's reputation was tarnished by the killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. — ABC News, 8 July 2026

In that light, the NCAA has insisted that the more college sports seem like pro sports, with athletes who want to stick around well into their 20s, the game’s marketability and TV ratings could be tarnished. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 7 July 2026

The opposition vastly outspent the proponents, but analysts also attributed the loss to the lack of voter trust in city government, where years of fiscal struggles and bad real estate transactions have tarnished City Hall’s image. — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 June 2026

His reputation was tarnished, however, by the global financial crisis which struck a decade later. — Scott Horsley, NPR, 22 June 2026

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

Owner-chairman Tony Bloom’s worldwide data bank has helped Brighton make some shrewd deals, but has their strong trading reputation been tarnished during the first two years of Hurzeler’s reign? — Andy Naylor, New York Times, 15 June 2026