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tarnishable

[tahr-nish] Origin

tar·nish

[tahr-nish]
verb (used with object)
1.
to dull the luster of (a metallic surface), especially 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.

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Tarnishable is always a great word to know.
So is zedonk. Does it mean:
a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question.
the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.
noun
5.
a tarnished coating.
6.
tarnished condition; discoloration; alteration of the luster of a metal.
7.
a stain or blemish.

Origin:
1590–1600; < Middle French terniss-, long stem of ternir to dull, deaden, derivative of terne dull, wan < Germanic; compare Old High German tarni, cognate with Old Saxon derni, Old English dierne hidden, obscure; see -ish2

tar·nish·a·ble, adjective
an·ti·tar·nish, adjective
an·ti·tar·nish·ing, adjective
non·tar·nish·a·ble, adjective
non·tar·nished, adjective
EXPAND
non·tar·nish·ing, adjective
un·tar·nish·a·ble, adjective
un·tar·nished, adjective
un·tar·nish·ing, adjective
COLLAPSE


2. taint, blemish, soil.


1. brighten.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
Cite This Source Link To tarnishable
Collins
World English Dictionary
tarnish (ˈtɑːnɪʃ)
 
vb
1.  to lose or cause to lose the shine, esp by exposure to air or moisture resulting in surface oxidation; discolour: silver tarnishes quickly
2.  to stain or become stained; taint or spoil: a fraud that tarnished his reputation
 
n
3.  a tarnished condition, surface, or film
 
[C16: from Old French ternir to make dull, from terne lustreless, of Germanic origin; related to Old High German tarnen to conceal, Old English dierne hidden]
 
'tarnishable
 
adj
 
'tarnisher
 
n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

tarnish
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.
EXPAND
Figurative sense is from 1697. The noun is recorded from 1713.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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