1
as in staining
to make dirty
their clothes were smirched by dust from the trail
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in humiliating
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
this scandal will forever smirch the name of a once-great family
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smirching
Verb
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Enter this darling Dutch oven—it’s constructed with long-lasting cast-iron and finished with a triple-layer enamel coating that prevents chipping, fading, cracking, and staining with use.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
3 Sep. 2025 -
After victims were taken inside the hospital, photos taken by an employee of the Gaza Ministry of Health show blood staining multiple floors of the stairwell.—
Gianluca Mezzofiore,
CNN Money,
27 Aug. 2025
Verb
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This announcement, humiliating the involved member, is harmful.—
Kelly G. Richardson,
Oc Register,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Each footstep sent up clouds of dust and ash, coating everything, including my mouth and teeth, in fine grit, blackening my snot and saliva.—
River Selby
August 25,
Literary Hub,
25 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Further discrediting itself, Thursday’s writeup includes a marketing pitch for the SquareX platform.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
28 Aug. 2025
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Wolfenbarger’s defense attorneys began to focus on discrediting Norma as a witness after prosecutors relied on her testimony to show the jury that her daughter Melissa had allegedly suffered abuse at the hands of her husband before her 1998 disappearance, according to WSB-TV.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
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If that wasn’t embarrassing enough, then came an ugly post-game brawl that has gone viral on social media all over the world.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
3 Sep. 2025
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Taking just the bare stats into consideration, Rooney's managerial career has been defined by a horrendously low win rate, but that is in addition to a spate of embarrassing off-field antics.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The last two seasons have proven that the team starts off slow, which ends up messing their chances of making the playoffs.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Smirching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smirching. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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