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Definitions

defile

[dih-fahyl] / dɪˈfaɪl /


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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I got in there the idea of a strain with the Lakers, but I wanted to make sure to not defile that relationship based upon certain things that I wasn’t going to dig into.

From Los Angeles Times Apr. 14, 2026

A soldier who requested anonymity explained to AFP that since then the body had been guarded around the clock "so that rival groups do not defile him."

From Barron's Mar. 3, 2026

Some Parisians backed the move, but others - including heritage campaigners - said it was a bad idea and would "defile" the French capital's iconic monument.

From BBC Sep. 2, 2024

“We can’t just take, defile and desecrate someone’s body without consent,” Numa says.

From Salon Jan. 23, 2024

The route took us up the gently sloping floor of the Western Cwm, the highest box canyon on earth, a horseshoe-shaped defile gouged from the heart of the Everest massif by the Khumbu Glacier.

From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer

"It is time to realize that fundamentalism defiles and corrupts every creed," he said.

From Reuters Sep. 14, 2022

In the name of personalization, she says, “it defiles, ignores, overrides and displaces everything about you and me that is personal.”

From Seattle Times Dec. 11, 2019

Even as he builds his delegate count, he gains strength from the very groups he defiles.

From The Guardian Mar. 10, 2016

If Wood defiles this terrain, he does so by not describing it as vibrantly as you might hope.

From Los Angeles Times Feb. 18, 2016

The boys chose their way through defiles and over heaps of sharp stone.

From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding

The writer Octavio Paz, the Mexican Nobel laureate, denounced Malinche as a kind of malevolent Eve whose submission to Cortés forever defiled Mexico’s mixed identity.

From Los Angeles Times Jan. 25, 2026

Close friend Jo Peraldi finds it hard to believe that a day of high emotion surrounding the funeral of Orsoni's mother could have been defiled in such a way.

From BBC Jan. 17, 2026

The Seleucids captured the holy Temple of Jerusalem and defiled it by erecting an altar to the Greek god Zeus inside.

From National Geographic Dec. 7, 2023

Here was a natural wonder on par with the Grand Canyon, defiled by capitalism.

From Salon Mar. 22, 2020

The eagerly awaited food promised for Parcel Day arrives spoiled and defiled by rodents.

From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins

Coming to grips with the experience of that landscape was a major turning point in my understanding about the degree to which we as a species are capable of defiling our planet.

From BBC Mar. 7, 2023

"I don't want to reinforce that defiling the Capitol was OK. I don't want to do anything that would make this more likely in the future," he told CBS.

From Reuters Jan. 31, 2022

Others see the mining as defiling the land on the reserve by polluting the waters, stripping bare the land, as well as upending centuries-old cultural traditions.

From Seattle Times Jan. 17, 2022

"Without being able to arrest people, when we just fine them, they are probably making more money of the production of the things that are defiling the environment," the actor said in his welcome speech.

From Fox News Jun. 1, 2021

He hid his terror in his heart, however, and addressed the stranger: “What country is your fatherland? No hateful and defiling lies, I beg you. Tell me the truth.”

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton




Vocabulary lists containing defile


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