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8 dictionary results for: stain
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
stain 
[steyn] Pronunciation Key,
—Related forms
[steyn] Pronunciation Key, –noun
–verb (used with object)
–verb (used without object)
| 1. | a discoloration produced by foreign matter having penetrated into or chemically reacted with a material; a spot not easily removed. |
| 2. | a natural spot or patch of color different from that of the basic color, as on the body of an animal. |
| 3. | a cause of reproach; stigma; blemish: a stain on one's reputation. |
| 4. | coloration produced by a dye that penetrates a substance, as wood. |
| 5. | a dye made into a solution for coloring woods, textiles, etc. |
| 6. | a reagent or dye used in treating a specimen for microscopic examination. |
| 7. | to discolor with spots or streaks of foreign matter. |
| 8. | to bring reproach or dishonor upon; blemish. |
| 9. | to sully with guilt or infamy; corrupt. |
| 10. | to color or dye (wood, cloth, etc.) by any of various processes that change or react with the substance chemically. |
| 11. | to color with something that penetrates the substance. |
| 12. | to treat (a microscopic specimen) with some reagent or dye in order to color the whole or parts and so give distinctness, contrast of tissues, etc. |
| 13. | to produce a stain. |
| 14. | to become stained; take a stain: This fabric stains easily. |
—Related forms
stain·a·ble, adjective
stain·a·bil·i·ty, stain·a·ble·ness, noun
stain·a·bly, adverb
stainer, noun
—Synonyms 1, 3. mark, imperfection, blot. 3. taint. 7. spot, streak, soil, dirty. 8. sully, taint, tarnish, disgrace, dishonor, debase, defile, contaminate, pollute.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| stain
(stān) Pronunciation Key
v. stained, stain·ing, stains v. tr.
v. intr. To produce or receive discolorations. n.
[Middle English steinen, partly from Old French desteindre, desteign-, to deprive of color (des-, dis- + teindre, to dye from Latin tingere), and partly from Old Norse steina, to paint.] stain'a·ble adj., stain'er n. Synonyms: These nouns denote a mark of discredit or disgrace, as on one's good name: a stain on his honor; the blot of treason; the brand of cowardice; the stigma of ignominious defeat; the taint of vice. |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
stain (v.)
stain (v.)
1382, probably representing a merger of O.N. steina "to paint" and an aphetic form of M.E. disteynen "to discolor or stain," from O.Fr. desteign-, stem of desteindre "to remove the color," from des- (from L. dis- "remove") + O.Fr. teindre "to dye," from L. tingere (see tincture). The noun is from 1563. Stained glass is attested from 1791.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| stain | |
noun | |
| 1. | a soiled or discolored appearance; "the wine left a dark stain" |
| 2. | (microscopy) a dye or other coloring material that is used in microscopy to make structures visible |
| 3. | the state of being covered with unclean things [syn: dirt] |
| 4. | a symbol of disgrace or infamy; "And the Lord set a mark upon Cain"--Genesis [syn: mark] |
| 5. | an act that brings discredit to the person who does it; "he made a huge blot on his copybook" [syn: blot] |
verb | |
| 1. | color with a liquid dye or tint; "Stain this table a beautiful walnut color"; "people knew how to stain glass a beautiful blue in the middle ages" |
| 2. | produce or leave stains; "Red wine stains the table cloth" |
| 3. | make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; also used metaphorically; "The silver was tarnished by the long exposure to the air"; "Her reputation was sullied after the affair with a married man" [syn: tarnish] |
| 4. | color for microscopic study; "The laboratory worker dyed the specimen" |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
To treat specimens for the microscope with a reagent or dye that makes visible certain structures without affecting others.
stain (stān)
n.
- A reagent or dye that is used for staining microscopic specimens.
- A procedure in which a dye or a combination of dyes and reagents is used to color the constituents of cells and tissues.
To treat specimens for the microscope with a reagent or dye that makes visible certain structures without affecting others.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Stain
Stain\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Stained; p. pr. & vb. n. Staining.] [Abbrev. fr. distain.]1. To discolor by the application of foreign matter; to make foul; to spot; as, to stain the hand with dye; armor stained with blood. 2. To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth, or the like, by processess affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with, or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as, to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass. 3. To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish. Of honor void, Of innocence, of faith, of purity, Our wonted ornaments now soiled and stained. --Milton. 4. To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison. She stains the ripest virgins of her age. --Beau. & Fl. That did all other beasts in beauty stain. --Spenser. Stained glass, glass colored or stained by certain metallic pigments fused into its substance, -- often used for making ornament windows. Syn: To paint; dye; blot; soil; sully; discolor; disgrace; taint. Usage: Paint, Stain, Dye. These denote three different processes; the first mechanical, the other two, chiefly chemical. To paint a thing is so spread a coat of coloring matter over it; to stain or dye a thing is to impart color to its substance. To stain is said chiefly of solids, as wood, glass, paper; to dye, of fibrous substances, textile fabrics, etc.; the one, commonly, a simple process, as applying a wash; the other more complex, as fixing colors by mordants.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Stain
Stain\, v. i. To give or receive a stain; to grow dim.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Stain
Stain\, n. 1. A discoloration by foreign matter; a spot; as, a stain on a garment or cloth. --Shak. 2. A natural spot of a color different from the gound. Swift trouts, diversified with crimson stains. --Pope. 3. Taint of guilt; tarnish; disgrace; reproach. Nor death itself can wholly wash their stains. --Dryden. Our opinion . . . is, I trust, without any blemish or stain of heresy. --Hooker. 4. Cause of reproach; shame. --Sir P. Sidney. 5. A tincture; a tinge. [R.] You have some stain of soldier in you. --Shak. Syn: Blot; spot; taint; pollution; blemish; tarnish; color; disgrace; infamy; shame.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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