as in taints
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
a false accusation that nonetheless tarnished her reputation
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tarnishes
This translated into a lot of polishing, as silver tarnishes pretty quickly when it’s exposed to things like air and water thanks to a chemical reaction between the silver and sulfur gases in the environment.
—
Elliott Harrell, Southern Living, 30 Jan. 2026
Crowe believes that Maximus fathering a son with a woman other than his wife tarnishes his character's legacy, as the gladiator's primary motivation in the original film is to avenge the deaths of his wife and son.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
This tarnishes my view of Dean.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2025
Ana Luisa Tired of budget-friendly jewelry that tarnishes after just a few wears?
—Lauren Alexis Fisher, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Elliott Harrell, Southern Living, 30 Jan. 2026
Crowe believes that Maximus fathering a son with a woman other than his wife tarnishes his character's legacy, as the gladiator's primary motivation in the original film is to avenge the deaths of his wife and son.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
This tarnishes my view of Dean.
—Edward Segarra, USA Today, 7 Aug. 2025
Ana Luisa Tired of budget-friendly jewelry that tarnishes after just a few wears?
—Lauren Alexis Fisher, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tarnishes
Verb
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The sarcasm taints the question but doesn’t invalidate it.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
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The film centered on the Environmental Protection Agency encasing the Simpsons’ hometown of Springfield in a dome after Homer taints the area’s water supply.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
No sadness mars the purity of its paranoia.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
22 Mar. 2026
-
However, an earnestness mars most of the proceedings.—
Murtada Elfadl,
Variety,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Naturally, trouble spoils the crew’s relaxation in the form of an ocean princess named Yura (Allegra Clark; Saoiri Onishi) on the run from baddies Zodon (Christopher Corey Smith; Koichi Domoto) and Djeese (Yuri Lowenthal; Koji Yusa).—
Beatrice Loayza,
Variety,
1 May 2026
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Nestled in Sonoma County, 70 miles north of San Francisco, Healdsburg is an ideal destination for enjoying delicious food, wine country spoils and relaxation.—
Anna Katherine Clemmons,
USA Today,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Without an atmosphere, the surface would be especially vulnerable to this process, known as space weathering, which gradually breaks down and darkens rock.—
Sharmila Kuthunur,
Space.com,
4 May 2026
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As the song ticks past the 20-minute mark, Goldie’s voice gets increasingly desperate and the music darkens.—
Ben Cardew,
Pitchfork,
2 May 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, the unceasing churn of clothing, footwear and accessories depletes soils, poisons the water, pollutes the air, drives deforestation, accelerates biodiversity loss and generates runaway planet-warming emissions that undermine brands’ lofty environmental ambitions.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
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And two, baking soda is an indiscriminate weed killer that poisons the soil.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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What Sacks doesn’t get is that by financing and diplomatically supporting Israel, our country makes the crimes of the Israeli government possible, which stains America’s reputation in the world and drains our Treasury.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
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Every failure of the state now stains the turban as well as the uniform.—
Bobby Ghosh,
Time,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tarnishes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tarnishes. Accessed 7 May. 2026.
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