Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A small mark that makes the appearance of something less attractive.
- noun An imperfection that mars or impairs; a flaw.
- transitive verb To cause to have a small mark or marks that diminish attractiveness.
- transitive verb To mar or impair by a flaw.
from The Century Dictionary.
- To damage or impair (especially something that is well formed, or in other respects excellent); mar or make defective; destroy the perfection of; deface; sully.
- To impair morally; tarnish, as reputation or character; defame; stain: as, to
blemish one's fair fame. - noun A defect, flaw, or imperfection; something that mars beauty, completeness, or perfection.
- noun A moral defect or injury; reproach; disgrace; that which impairs reputation; imputation.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- transitive verb To mark with deformity; to injure or impair, as anything which is well formed, or excellent; to mar, or make defective, either the body or mind.
- transitive verb To tarnish, as reputation or character; to defame.
- noun Any mark of deformity or injury, whether physical or moral; anything that diminishes beauty, or renders imperfect that which is otherwise well formed; that which impairs reputation.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A small
flaw which spoils theappearance of something, astain , aspot . - noun A
moral defect; acharacter flaw. - verb To spoil the appearance of.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- verb mar or spoil the appearance of
- noun a mark or flaw that spoils the appearance of something (especially on a person's body)
- verb add a flaw or blemish to; make imperfect or defective
- verb mar or impair with a flaw
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Hes a very aggressive player whose only blemish is that hes not a great skater.
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It is being described as a blemish on Egypt and Egyptians.
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As the Star Tribune's Emily Johns reported last week, "The state's vexing achievement gap has become a long-term blemish on an otherwise good reputation for educational performance."
Asian American Press | AAPress.com aanews 2010
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As the Star Tribune's Emily Johns reported last week, "The state's vexing achievement gap has become a long-term blemish on an otherwise good reputation for educational performance."
Asian American Press | AAPress.com aanews 2010
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As the Star Tribune's Emily Johns reported last week, "The state's vexing achievement gap has become a long-term blemish on an otherwise good reputation for educational performance."
Asian American Press | AAPress.com aanews 2010
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Gaudi’s blemish is a symptom of the Disneyfication of Christianity, as I told a girl, persuading but failing to impress.
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Well that's a malignant tumor calling a blemish melanoma.
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Her minuteness of detail has also been found fault with; but even where it produces, at the time, a degree of tediousness, we know not whether that can justly be reckoned a blemish, which is absolutely essential to
Famous Reviews R. Brimley Johnson 1899
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They were both of that rich dark reddish roan, and wonderfully alike, the differences being in their legs; one being nearly black in this important part of its person, the other having what most purchasers would call the blemish of four white legs -- it being a canon amongst the wise in horseflesh that
Off to the Wilds Being the Adventures of Two Brothers George Manville Fenn 1870
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Sir Jasper brought a reassuring account of the poor little steed, which would be usable again after a short rest, and the blemish was the less important as there was no intention of selling him.
Beechcroft at Rockstone Charlotte Mary Yonge 1862
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