blacken

[blak-uhn]

verb (used with object)

1. to make black; darken.

2. to speak evil of; defame.

   to blacken a person's reputation.

   Synonyms: calumniate, traduce, libel, slander, smear, denigrate

verb (used without object)

1. to grow or become black.

blacken

/ ˈblækən /

verb

1. to make or become black or dirty

2. (tr) to defame; slander (esp in the phrase blacken someone's name )

Other Word Forms

• blackener noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of blacken¹

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; black, -en ¹

Example Sentences

"The fire spread to every corner -- I don't know if any consignment could escape," said one exhausted firefighter, whose uniform was greyed and hands blackened.

Read more on Barron's

She said that people believed there was a "cover-up" and that the McCanns' names had been "blackened" and urged the couple to do a DNA test with Ms Wandelt.

Read more on BBC

“Char is good but you don’t want it blackened,” he said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Tole, whose eyes had been blackened out to protect his identity at the time, is wearing what appears to be a neck brace and is hooked up to monitors.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

They wake up each morning to reminders of apocalypse: blackened stumps and ghostly bare branches where a tree canopy used to be, and bald rocks and makeshift shelters where homes used to stand.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• blot 
• smudge 
• stain 
• sully 
• tarnish