1
as in taints
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
believed that luxury vitiates even the most principled person
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in damages
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
numerous grammatical errors vitiate the effectiveness of your writing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in degrades
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
a penchant for coarse language vitiates what is otherwise a refined literary style
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vitiates
Verb
-
That’s been an idiotic trope for too long — that participating in the business side of it taints you.—
Marc Weingarten,
Los Angeles Times,
8 June 2026 -
The sarcasm taints the question but doesn’t invalidate it.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Dana Sue and Ronnie's strained relationship is exasperated by a fire that breaks out — accelerated by off-brand e-bikes Ronnie bought behind Dana Sue’s back and stored in their garage — and damages their house.—
Francesca Gariano,
PEOPLE,
13 June 2026
-
Roslovic’s poor playoff showing severely damages his chances of earning an extension with the Oilers for next season and of a sizable deal elsewhere.—
Shayna Goldman,
New York Times,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Regular care maintains hygiene by preventing buildup, which degrades fabric and comfort over time.—
Maria Sabella,
The Spruce,
15 June 2026
-
The researchers note that lignin often degrades during extraction, while most current processing methods produce complicated mixtures of chemical compounds rather than simple, high-value molecules suitable for large-scale manufacturing.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
Even worse, some streams lag so far behind live that a text from a friend or app notification spoils a game-changing goal.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
12 June 2026
-
Alphabet, Microsoft, Nvidia, OpenAI and the sundry other rivals for the AI spoils can’t all grab a couple of points of GDP in sales, the prize built into SpaceX’s celestial cap.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
6 June 2026
Verb
-
Who is responsible when a robot breaks something or injures someone?—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
13 June 2026
-
This storyline later appeared in the second season of Girls, as Dunham’s character Hannah is overwhelmed with the anxiety of writing a novel and similarly injures herself.—
Caitlin Huston,
HollywoodReporter,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Restricting those channels weakens influence competitors have struggled to match.—
Yinka Adegoke,
semafor.com,
15 June 2026
-
Iran’s government warned that any division at home over the deal weakens its negotiating position, and that those criticizing negotiators are taking aim at a national decision.—
Julia Frankel,
Los Angeles Times,
14 June 2026
Verb
-
In the film, Cady also poisons the family dog, Benjamin.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
12 June 2026
-
The bait poisons the entire colony, including the queen, so no new ants can be produced.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
9 June 2026
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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Vitiates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vitiates. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
