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blighted; blighting; blights
1
botany
: to affect (a plant) with a disease or injury marked by the formation of lesions, withering, and death of parts (such as leaves and tubers) : to affect with blight (see blight entry 1 sense 1)
Synonyms
Example Sentences
Noun
the city's spreading urban blight
the expanding urban sprawl is a blight on the countryside
Verb
Builders blighted the land with malls and parking lots.
Recent Examples on the Web
Deidre Montague, Hartford Courant, 12 Oct. 2022
Of that, $400 million was set aside to address budget shortfalls, while the remaining $426 million was designated for community investments, such employment and job creation, blight remediation and home repairs.
Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 21 July 2022
Birmingham City Councilor Latonya Tate answered the call, directing 311 and the city’s Department of Transportation to the blight.
Howard Koplowitz | Hkoplowitz@al.com, al, 5 July 2022
The key is to lift the plant off the ground and encourage air circulation; the closer to the soil, the more likely the plant will be exposed to blight, rot, bugs—and, um, in NYC, rats.
Natasha Li Pickowicz, Bon Appétit, 3 Nov. 2022
Cunningham had seven of Detroit's 14 turnovers, a significant blight on his otherwise good night.
Detroit Free Press, 27 Oct. 2022
Since its establishment in 1979, the Khomeinist regime has been a curse on Iran and a blight on the world.
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 20 Oct. 2022
This jack-o'-lantern carved from a pumpkin with a preexisting fungal disease, southern blight, is showing symptoms of soft rot, especially around the nose and eye.
Matt Kasson, CBS News, 10 Oct. 2022
The Rockets' two titles, in 1994 and 1995, are today looked back upon by the greater basketball commentariat as a fluke, a blip in history, even a blight upon the game.
Rahat Huq, Chron, 7 Oct. 2022
Gladys Tsai, CNN, 19 Oct. 2022
The killing of Freya has polarized Oslo and threatens to blight the image of a country more commonly associated with diplomatic good deeds than mob-like hits.
New York Times, 19 Aug. 2022
The passenger caps have already prompted carriers to cancel more flights and halt some bookings—setbacks that are now set to blight the normally busy school breaks in the fall.
Benjamin Katz, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022
And these avatars certainly capture ABBA’s original exuberance, minus the Jurassic tendencies that tend to blight decades-after-the-fact reunions in the real world.
Mark Sutherland, Variety, 27 May 2022
Baltimore Housing Commissioner Alice Kennedy praised the mayor for his commitment to blight prevention and pledged to keep working diligently to address the nearly 15,000 vacant houses in Baltimore.
Lea Skene, Baltimore Sun, 12 May 2022
Challenges are based on worries that the vast arrays of turbines will interfere with fishing, obstruct naval exercises and blight views from summer houses.
New York Times, 22 Mar. 2022
In the clinical world, consistency is king; gaps in data can blight the reliability of any takeaways, or beleaguer analysis.
Grace Browne, Wired, 14 Mar. 2022
Doping allegations continue to blight Russia’s race-walking program—17 of its athletes have been banned for doping in the past few years—even as athletes from the program have dominated the world championships and Olympics.
The Editors, Outside Online, 15 Jan. 2015
See More
Noun
As of last month, the city employed eight inspectors, according to Judith Rothchild, the city’s blight remediation director.
Deidre Montague, Hartford Courant, 12 Oct. 2022
Of that, $400 million was set aside to address budget shortfalls, while the remaining $426 million was designated for community investments, such employment and job creation, blight remediation and home repairs.
Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 21 July 2022
Birmingham City Councilor Latonya Tate answered the call, directing 311 and the city’s Department of Transportation to the blight.
Howard Koplowitz | Hkoplowitz@al.com, al, 5 July 2022
The key is to lift the plant off the ground and encourage air circulation; the closer to the soil, the more likely the plant will be exposed to blight, rot, bugs—and, um, in NYC, rats.
Natasha Li Pickowicz, Bon Appétit, 3 Nov. 2022
Cunningham had seven of Detroit's 14 turnovers, a significant blight on his otherwise good night.
Detroit Free Press, 27 Oct. 2022
Since its establishment in 1979, the Khomeinist regime has been a curse on Iran and a blight on the world.
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 20 Oct. 2022
This jack-o'-lantern carved from a pumpkin with a preexisting fungal disease, southern blight, is showing symptoms of soft rot, especially around the nose and eye.
Matt Kasson, CBS News, 10 Oct. 2022
The Rockets' two titles, in 1994 and 1995, are today looked back upon by the greater basketball commentariat as a fluke, a blip in history, even a blight upon the game.
Rahat Huq, Chron, 7 Oct. 2022
Verb
But now many murals have vanished, apparently after an attempt to preserve the artworks resulted in many being destroyed, sparking a dispute that continues to blight the tourist attraction.
Gladys Tsai, CNN, 19 Oct. 2022
The killing of Freya has polarized Oslo and threatens to blight the image of a country more commonly associated with diplomatic good deeds than mob-like hits.
New York Times, 19 Aug. 2022
The passenger caps have already prompted carriers to cancel more flights and halt some bookings—setbacks that are now set to blight the normally busy school breaks in the fall.
Benjamin Katz, WSJ, 12 Aug. 2022
And these avatars certainly capture ABBA’s original exuberance, minus the Jurassic tendencies that tend to blight decades-after-the-fact reunions in the real world.
Mark Sutherland, Variety, 27 May 2022
Baltimore Housing Commissioner Alice Kennedy praised the mayor for his commitment to blight prevention and pledged to keep working diligently to address the nearly 15,000 vacant houses in Baltimore.
Lea Skene, Baltimore Sun, 12 May 2022
Challenges are based on worries that the vast arrays of turbines will interfere with fishing, obstruct naval exercises and blight views from summer houses.
New York Times, 22 Mar. 2022
In the clinical world, consistency is king; gaps in data can blight the reliability of any takeaways, or beleaguer analysis.
Grace Browne, Wired, 14 Mar. 2022
Doping allegations continue to blight Russia’s race-walking program—17 of its athletes have been banned for doping in the past few years—even as athletes from the program have dominated the world championships and Olympics.
The Editors, Outside Online, 15 Jan. 2015
See More
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'blight.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Word History
First Known Use
Noun
1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Verb
1695, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1
Phrases Containing blight
Dictionary Entries Near blight
Cite this Entry
“Blight.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blight. Accessed 1 Dec. 2022.
Kids Definition
More from Merriam-Webster on blight
Nglish: Translation of blight for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of blight for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about blight
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