defiling 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of defilingnext
as in pernicious

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

defiling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of defile
1
as in polluting
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable supplies of meat that had been defiled by maggots

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in violating
to treat (a sacred place or object) shamefully or with great disrespect art conservators were careful not to do anything that might defile the holy relic

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for defiling
  1. pernicious
  2. polluting
  3. violating
  4. cursed
  5. poisoning
  6. unwholesome
  7. corrupt
  8. forbidden
Adjective
  • Academic opportunists the past week showed once more how pernicious, naïve misinformation can catch fire and consume the truth, especially when dressed with the veneer of academic credibility.
    Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 2 Feb. 2023
  • Most of us can agree the world is in a perilous state, with natural disasters multiplying, pernicious new viruses continually emerging, the planet steadily overheating, and wars raging in constant rotation.
    David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 1 Feb. 2023
Definition of pernicious
Verb
  • This is yet another example of how humans and the organizations run by humans are polluting the Earth and its bodies of water with all sorts of things including a range of different pharmaceutical products.
    Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024
  • Gas-burning equipment is also polluting the inside of our homes.
    Susan Miller, Baltimore Sun, 19 Dec. 2024
Definition of polluting
Verb
  • Even in districts that have staff dedicated to teaching Black history, some teachers are afraid of violating state law, according to Brian Knowles, who oversees African American, Holocaust and Latino studies for the Palm Beach County school district.
    Kate Payne, Orlando Sentinel, 23 Dec. 2024
  • That year, the campaign finance regulator separately found that Wyss’s groups failed to provide evidence of certain grant agreements upon conservatives accusing him of violating laws on foreign nationals making donations.
    Gabe Kaminsky, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 22 Dec. 2024
Definition of violating
Adjective
  • This is the beginning of the road trip and the first real moment of cursed bad luck for Alexander.
    Yolanda Machado, EW.com, 19 Dec. 2024
  • After all, playing the backup five for Denver seems practically cursed at this point.
    Bennett Durando, The Denver Post, 7 Dec. 2024
Definition of cursed
Verb
  • Defense lawyers said that speech included a series of improper and prejudicial comments against the defendants and their legal team, poisoning any potential jurors against them.
    Kate Brumback, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
  • These are people who are here in this country, who have been murdering, raping, poisoning our citizens.
    NBC News, NBC News, 10 Nov. 2024
Definition of poisoning
Adjective
  • As for the place, its veneer of comfortable tourism doesn’t hide the air of something unwholesome, especially when female guests start randomly throwing up.
    David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024
  • Less visibly, Manton operated a side business with a more unwholesome objective: cashing in on his status and power as a judge.
    Time, Time, 25 July 2023
Definition of unwholesome
Adjective
  • His first 2016 term was derailed by COVID, but after four years of failure by the corrupt Biden administration, President Trump's 2024 win was a victory by a diverse and broad coalition of Americans.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 30 Dec. 2024
  • Shin Ha-kyun’s deadpan performance as a supernaturally gifted corporate fraud investigator sets the tone for this unusual procedural, which follows an auditing team at the deeply corrupt JU Construction firm.
    Simon Abrams, New York Times, 27 Dec. 2024
Definition of corrupt
Adjective
  • Within the forbidden halls of Division Five, Suzie finds all the windows covered with plywood.
    Chris Klimek, Vulture, 10 July 2024
  • Countless vampire stories make the allure of the vampire as some sort of forbidden fruit—tantalizing, but a bite will invariably lead to ruin.
    James Grebey, TIME, 18 Oct. 2024
Definition of forbidden
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.

Thesaurus Entries Near defiling

defiles

defiling

definable

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Cite this Entry

“Defiling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defiling. Accessed 4 Jan. 2025.

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More from Merriam-Webster on defiling

Nglish: Translation of defiling for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of defiling for Arabic Speakers

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