besmirch
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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Steele doesn’t besmirch the data that punishes his Redhawks, but he also says “there’s something to winning.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 2, 2026
There was also criticism from the Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetang'ula, who said the aim of the documentary was to "besmirch" Kenya.
From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2025
Citing this isn’t meant to besmirch Lear’s legacy but, rather, to highlight his flaws as a part of his evolution.
From Salon ● Dec. 7, 2023
It’s still theirs and not yours to besmirch.
From Seattle Times ● Jul. 7, 2023
The critics were jealous, the articles said, and looking for ways to besmirch the respected surgeons involved in Garfield's care.
From "Ambushed!" by Gail Jarrow
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"Behaviour like that, whether it's at an Old Firm match or any other football match, besmirches that, and it should absolutely be seen as unacceptable."
From BBC ● Apr. 4, 2022
Yet his failure to universally apply the Constitution’s protections besmirches his record.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 14, 2021
Mud besmirches his van’s tiny, neat living space.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 6, 2018
It is unfortunate that this Times article indirectly besmirches the Yankees.
From New York Times ● Jul. 8, 2017
But in one way or another, justice demands that the slanderer contradict his lying imputations and remove by so doing the stain that besmirches the character of his victim.
From Explanation of Catholic Morals A Concise, Reasoned, and Popular Exposition of Catholic Morals by John H. (John Henry) Stapleton
“New banks didn’t even call themselves banks and instead used the expression caisses, meaning ‘deposits,’ so besmirched was the banking industry’s reputation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 12, 2025
"What happened thereafter has besmirched the unsuspecting town of Kidwelly," he said.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2025
Whitfield, who is biracial, claimed that Hassan’s comments about how she got the job on the show besmirched her merits, something that Black women often have to deal with in the workforce.
From Salon ● Feb. 12, 2025
Securities and Exchange Commission, had wrongly besmirched Hindenburg’s “well-deserved reputation for thoroughness, precision and accuracy.”
From Reuters ● Feb. 2, 2023
Was there any kind of filth with which he had not besmirched himself, any sin and folly which he had not committed, any stain upon his soul for which he alone had not been responsible?
From "Siddhartha" by Hermann Hesse
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The businesses declared themselves outraged by the government besmirching their reputation.
From BBC ● Jan. 18, 2023
Like, say, besmirching an evening that featured Black women making Oscars history, with Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes joining Amy Schumer as the first trio of women to host the show.
From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2022
By besmirching both her character and her work, the lawsuit stripped away all of her armor at once.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2020
So is the fact that he considered burying other ethically troubling allegations about nominees the decent thing to do—to avoid besmirching their characters.
From Slate ● Jun. 17, 2020
He did not dread besmirching his hands with any affairs sent him by God.
From Memories of Hawthorne by Rose Hawthorne Lathrop
Vocabulary lists containing besmirch
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
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