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tarnish

 - 3 dictionary results

tar⋅nish

  [tahr-nish]
–verb (used with object)
1. to dull the luster of (a metallic surface), esp. by oxidation; discolor.
2. to diminish or destroy the purity of; stain; sully: The scandal tarnished his reputation.
–verb (used without object)
3. to grow dull or discolored; lose luster.
4. to become sullied.
–noun
5. a tarnished coating.
6. tarnished condition; discoloration; alteration of the luster of a metal.
7. a stain or blemish.
Use tarnish in a Sentence
Origin:
1590–1600; < MF terniss-, long s. of ternir to dull, deaden, deriv. of terne dull, wan < Gmc; cf. OHG tarni, c. OS derni, OE dierne hidden, obscure; see -ish 2

Related forms:
tar⋅nish⋅a⋅ble, adjective

Synonyms:
2. taint, blemish, soil.

Antonyms:
1. brighten.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To tarnish
tar·nish   (tär'nĭsh)   
v.   tar·nished, tar·nish·ing, tar·nish·es

v.   tr.

  1. To dull the luster of; discolor, especially by exposure to air or dirt.

    1. To detract from or spoil; taint: a tragedy that tarnished our hopes.

    2. To cast aspersions on; sully: slander that tarnished the senator's image.

v.   intr.

  1. To lose luster; become discolored.

  2. To diminish or become tainted.

n.  

  1. The condition of being tarnished.

  2. Discoloration of a metal surface caused by corrosion or oxidation.

  3. The condition of being sullied or tainted.


[Middle English ternisshen, from Old French ternir, terniss-, to dull, from terne, dull, of Germanic origin.]
tar'nish·a·ble adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

tarnish  (v.)
1598, from prp. stem of M.Fr. ternir "dull the luster or brightness of, make dim" (15c.), probably from O.Fr. adj. terne "dull, dark," from a Frank. source cognate with O.H.G. tarnjan "to conceal, hide," O.E. dyrnan "to hide, darken," from P.Gmc. *darnijaz, related to dark. Figurative sense is from 1697. The noun is recorded from 1713.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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