| Main Entry: | |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | alter or debase, often for profit |
| Synonyms: | alloy, amalgamate, attenuate, blend, cheapen, commingle, contaminate, cook, corrupt, cut*, defile, degrade, denature, depreciate, deteriorate, devalue, dilute, dissolve, doctor up, doctor*, falsify, impair, infiltrate, intermix, irrigate, lace, make impure, mingle, mix, phony up, plant*, pollute, shave, spike*, taint, thin, transfuse, vitiate, water down, weaken |
| Antonyms: | clarify, clean, cleanse, distill, filter, free, purify, refine |
| Main Entry: | corrupt |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | pervert; pollute |
| Synonyms: | abase, abuse, adulterate, animalize, bastardize, blemish, blight, bribe, contaminate, damage, debase, debauch, decay, decompose, deface, defile, deform, degrade, demean, demoralize, deprave, depreciate, despoil, disfigure, disgrace, dishonor, fix, grease palm, harm, hurt, ill-treat, impair, infect, injure, lower, lure, maltreat, mar, mistreat, misuse, outrage, pull down, putrefy, ravage, reduce, rot, ruin, spoil, square, stain, suborn, subvert, taint, undermine, violate, vitiate, warp, waste |
| Antonyms: | better, chasten, cleanse, dignify, improve, purify |
| Main Entry: | defile |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | corrupt, violate |
| Synonyms: | abuse, adulterate, befoul, besmirch, contaminate, debase, deflower, degrade, desecrate, dirty, discolor, disgrace, dishonor, hurt, maculate, make foul, mess up*, molest, muck up, pollute, profane, rape, ravish, scuzz up, seduce, shame, smear, soil, stain, sully, taint, tar, tarnish, trash, vitiate |
| Antonyms: | clean, clease, hallow, honor, purify, sanctify |
| Main Entry: | deteriorate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | decay, degenerate |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, alloy, be worse for wear, become worse, break, corrode, corrupt, crumble, debase, debilitate, decline, decompose, degrade, deprave, depreciate, descend, disimprove, disintegrate, ebb, fade, fail, fall apart, flag, go downhill, go to pieces, go to pot, go to the dogs, hit the skids, impair, injure, languish, lapse, lessen, lose it, lose quality, lower, mar, pervert, regress, retrograde, retrogress, rot, sink, skid, slide, spoil, undermine, vitiate, weaken, wear away, worsen |
| Notes: | to degenerate means 'to decline in value, move lower on a scale' but to deteriorate means 'to worsen, to become lowered, or be reduced in value'; degenerate pertains more to character and virtue while deteriorate is more about loss of strength or vitality |
| Antonyms: | build, construct, develop, get better, improve |
| Main Entry: | dilute |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | make thinner; weaken |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, alter, attenuate, cook, cut, decrease, deliquesce, diffuse, diminish, doctor up, doctor*, irrigate, lace, lessen, liquefy, mitigate, mix, moderate, modify, needle, phony up, plant, qualify, reduce, shave, spike, temper, water, water down |
| Antonyms: | concentrate, strengthen, thicken |
| Main Entry: | dope |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | drug someone |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, anesthetize, deaden, debase, inject, knock out, load, narcotize, put to sleep, sedate, soak, sophisticate, stupefy |
| Main Entry: | falsify |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | alter, misrepresent |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, belie, change, color, con, contort, contradict, contravene, cook, counterfeit, deacon, deceive, deny, distort, doctor, dress up, embroider, equivocate, exaggerate, fake, fake it, fib, forge, four-flush, frame up, garble, gloss, lie, misquote, misstate, palter, pervert, phony up, prevaricate, promote, put on an act, salt, tamper with, traverse, trump up, twist, warp |
| Main Entry: | misrepresent/misquote |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | lie, distort |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, angle, beard, belie, build up, cloak, color, con, confuse, cover up, disguise, distort, dress, embellish, embroider, equivocate, exaggerate, falsify, garble, give snow job, mangle, mask, miscolor, misinterpret, misreport, misstate, overdraw, overstate, palter, pervert, phony up, pirate*, prevaricate, promote, puff, skew, slant, snow*, spread it on, stretch, take out of context, throw a curve, trump up, twist, warp |
| Antonyms: | be forthright, be honest, explain |
| Main Entry: | mix |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | combine, join |
| Synonyms: | admix, adulterate, alloy, amalgamate, associate, blend, braid, coalesce, commingle, commix, compound, conjoin, cross, embody, fuse, hybridize, incorporate, infiltrate, infuse, instill, interbreed, intermingle, interweave, jumble, knead, link, lump, make up, merge, mingle, mix up, put together, saturate, stir, suffuse, synthesize, tangle, transfuse, unite, weave, work in |
| Notes: | in a mixture, the combined elements lose their individual identities and are fused, blended, or compounded in the result; in a mix, the elements, though combined, retain their individual identities |
| Antonyms: | detach, disconnect, divide, remove, separate, sever, unmix |