stain

I

(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)

n. color, dye, dyestuff; discoloration; blotch, blot, smear, smudge; blemish, tarnish; stigma, taint, brand. See uncleanness, disrepute.

II

(Roget's IV) n.

Syn. blot, smirch, blemish, spot, mottle, splotch, blotch, stained spot, smudge, discoloration, stigma, brand, blot on the escutcheon, something the matter, ink spot, spatter, drip, speck.

v.

1. [To soil]

Syn. spot, discolor, taint; see dirty .

2. [To color]

Syn. dye, tint, lacquer; see color 1 , paint 2 , varnish .

III

(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus)

I

n.

1. spot discoloration, streak, smudge, mark, blotch, speck, spatter, blemish, smirch.

2. dishonor stigma, shame, guilt, taint, disgrace, *black eye, odium, infamy, blot.

II

v.

1. spot discolor, streak, smudge, mark, blotch, speck, spatter, blemish, smirch.

2. dishonor stigmatize, shame, taint, *drag one's name through the mud, disgrace, *give a black eye, tarnish, discredit.

IV

(Roget's Thesaurus II) I verb 1. To soil with foreign matter: bestain, discolor, smut. See CLEAN, MARKS. 2. To contaminate the reputation of: befoul, besmear, besmirch, bespatter, blacken, cloud, denigrate, dirty, smear, smudge, smut, soil, spatter, sully, taint, tarnish. Idioms: give a black eye to, sling (or throw) mud on. See ATTACK, CLEAN. 3. To ruin utterly in character or quality: annualize, bastardize, bestiahze, brutalize, canker, corrupt, debase, debauch, demoralize, deprave, pervert, vitiate, warp. See CLEAN, HELP. 4. To impart color to: color, dye, tincture, tint. See COLORS. II noun 1. A discolored mark made by smearing: blot, blotch, daub, smear, smirch, smudge, smutch, splotch. See MARKS. 2. A mark of discredit or disgrace: black eye, blemish, blot, onus, spot, stigma, taint, tarnish. Archaic: attaint. Idiom: a blot on one's escutcheon. See MARKS, RESPECT. 3. Something that imparts color: color, colorant, coloring, dye, dyestuff, pigment, tincture. See COLORS.