blacken

verb

black·​en ˈbla-kən 

blackened; blackening

ˈblak-niŋ,

ˈbla-kə- 

intransitive verb

: to become dark or black

the sky blackens

transitive verb

1

: to make black

2

: defame, sully

blackened her reputation

blackener

ˈblak-nər

ˈbla-kə- 

noun

Synonyms

• befoul
• begrime
• bemire
• besmirch
• daub
• dirty
• distain [archaic]
• foul
• gaum [dialect]
• grime
• mire
• muck
• muddy
• smirch
• smudge
• soil
• stain
• sully

Examples of blacken in a Sentence

Fire had blackened the field.

The sky blackened as the storm approached.

Their false accusations failed to blacken my reputation.

a presidency blackened by scandal

Recent Examples on the Web

On a Saturday afternoon in early July, the clouds blackened above Hampton Court Palace, southwest of London. —Sophie Elmhirst, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2024

The other, taken just after the October 7 attack, shows the same homes blackened and destroyed in the militants’ rampage. —Matthew Chance, CNN, 6 Oct. 2024

Today, Rafah is uninhabitable, its buildings crumbled and blackened. —Richard Engel, NBC News, 13 Sep. 2024

Damage inspections were ongoing, officials with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, said in a post on X. The fire burning in Clearlake, about 110 miles northwest of Sacramento, had blackened at least 76 acres as of Monday morning, according to Cal Fire reports. —Salvador Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English blaknen, blakenen, from blak black entry 1 + -n, -en -en entry 2

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Kids Definition

blacken

verb

black·​en ˈblak-ən 

blackened; blackening ˈblak-(ə-)niŋ 

1

: to make or become dark or black

2

: to hurt the reputation of

blackener

-(ə-)nər 

noun