Verb
people that sully our state parks with their trash
a once-gleaming marble interior sullied by decades of exposure to cigarette smoke
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Verb
After opening the game by driving Baltimore 73 yards for a score, culminating in his 16-yard touchdown pass to Rashod Bateman, Jackson sullied his second possession by sailing a ball over Bateman’s head that was picked off by Bills safety Taylor Rapp.—Michael Silver, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025 That the prestige of the office is sullied by his grasp for profits.—Eric Heavner, Baltimore Sun, 18 Jan. 2025 Starbucks works hard to keep its coffee aroma from being sullied by food and other smells in its stores — employees aren’t even allowed to wear fragrances.—Whizy Kim, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018 Not even a string of disappointing sequels, two bad movies, and odd franchise pivots by Konami has sullied its renown.—Lewis Gordon, Vulture, 9 Oct. 2024 See All Example Sentences for sully
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English *sullien, probably alteration (influenced by Anglo-French suillier, soiller to soil) of sulen to soil, from Old English sylian
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