besmirch
besmirch
Pronunciation
IPA Phonetic Spelling and Syllable Breakdown
The IPA phonetic spelling for "besmirch" (General American pronunciation) is:
/bɪˈsmɜːrt͡ʃ/
The word "besmirch" has two syllables, broken down as follows:
First Syllable: /bɪ/
Sound 1: /b/ (voiced bilabial stop, as in bat)
Sound 2: /ɪ/ (near-close near-front unrounded vowel, as in in)
Second Syllable: /ˈsmɜːrt͡ʃ/
Sound 1: /ˈs/ (voiceless alveolar fricative, as in sun - stress is placed on this syllable)
Sound 2: /m/ (voiced bilabial nasal, as in man)
Sound 3: /ɜːr/ (r-colored open-mid central vowel, as in bird)
Sound 4: /t͡ʃ/ (voiceless post-alveolar affricate, as in church)
Word Form Variations
The term "besmirch" is primarily a verb. Its common word form variations are:
Present Tense (Base Form): besmirch (e.g., I besmirch)
Third-Person Singular Present: besmirches (e.g., He besmirches)
Present Participle: besmirching (e.g., is besmirching)
Past Tense/Past Participle: besmirched (e.g., was besmirched, has besmirched)
Noun Forms:
besmircher (a person who besmirches)
besmirchment (the act or result of besmirching)
Adjective Forms:
besmirched (having been stained or disgraced)
unbesmirched (not having been stained or disgraced)
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Verb: Besmirch (Transitive)
Definition 1 (Figurative): To deliberately or inadvertently harm or damage the good reputation, honor, or standing of a person, group, or object through slander, falsehood, or association with disreputable actions.
Synonyms: Sully, tarnish, defame, blacken, discredit, dishonor, smear, slander.
Antonyms: Vindicate, exonerate, clear, honor, praise, commend, glorify.
Definition 2 (Literal/Less Common): To physically soil, stain, or make dirty, often in a way that reduces its purity or luster.
Synonyms: Soil, dirty, smudge, stain, begrime, discolor.
Antonyms: Cleanse, purify, polish, brighten.
Noun: Besmirchment
Definition: The act of damaging a reputation or the condition of being stained or dishonored.
Synonyms: Taint, dishonor, stain, blot, disgrace, defamation, sullying.
Antonyms: Vindication, clearing, honor, acquittal, purification.
Examples of Use
In Books and Literature
"Perhaps he loves you now, And now no soil nor cautel doth besmirch The virtue of his will." (William Shakespeare, Hamlet, c. 1603)
The novel's protagonist sought revenge against those who had deliberately tried to besmirch his family's honor with baseless accusations.
"I besmirch the milk of thy duty." (Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls, 1940)
In Newspapers and Online Publications
"Allegations of phone hacking should not be allowed to besmirch the profession as a whole," said a legal representative during a media inquiry (The Guardian, November 2011).
The defense team argued that the prosecution's tactics were merely an attempt to besmirch the defendant's character rather than presenting concrete evidence (Legal News Wire, May 2024).
Journalists are tasked with pursuing the truth, not with besmirching a public figure without verified, verifiable sources (Digital Media Ethics Review, July 2024).
In Public Discourse and Entertainment
A political candidate accused her rival of launching a campaign to besmirch her long-standing public service record before the primary election.
Commentators discussed how certain reality television shows can besmirch the reputation of everyday individuals by selectively editing their behavior for dramatic effect.
During a public debate, one activist argued that the new policy would besmirch the city's reputation as a progressive leader in environmental regulation.
A fan-written piece argued that the creators of a long-running television series had "allowed the final season's plot holes to fundamentally besmirch the show's otherwise strong legacy."
10 Famous Quotes Using Besmirch
"Perhaps he loves you now, And now no soil nor cautel doth besmirch The virtue of his will." (William Shakespeare, Hamlet)
"I would not do anything to besmirch my reputation any further than it has already been." (Randy Quaid)
"I will not have you, in the course of a single evening, besmirching that name by behaving like a babbling, bumbling band of baboons!" (J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire)
"Those who have greatest cause for guilt and shame Are quickest to besmirch a neighbour’s name." (Molière, Tartuffe)
"Only let go of our hands, don’t clutch at us and don’t besmirch the grand word freedom..." (Vladimir Lenin, What Is to Be Done?)
"In his solitude he can sunder and besmirch the fellowship, or he can strengthen and hallow it." (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together)
"Let neither tear nor reproach besmirch this declaration of the mastery of God who, with magnificent irony, granted me both the gift of books and the night." (Jorge Luis Borges)
"They would not allow such a man as Michael Jackson to say one word that they thought would besmirch their reputation, but they put us before the world as clowns..." (Louis Farrakhan)
"The King, later, wrote of his decision of refusing to fight, 'I could not sit on a throne besmirched by blood.'" (King Prajadhipok, Siamese Revolution of 1932)
"The besmirchment of a family’s good name can often last for generations, a silent wound passed down through history." (Original Quote)
Etymology
The word "besmirch" is essentially a compound word built from an old English prefix and a Middle English verb, meaning its origin helps explain its function.
The Root: Smirch
The core of the word comes from the Middle English verb smirch, which meant to soil, stain, or smudge. Think of it as being similar to "smear."
The Prefix: Be-
The prefix be- is a very old Germanic prefix (related to by) that acts as an intensifier or indicates that the verb's action is thoroughly applied, completely covering the object.
The Combination
When you combine be- (thoroughly) and smirch (to stain), you get a strong verb meaning "to thoroughly stain."
First Known Use and Meaning
The word "besmirch" first appeared in English around 1604.
Original Meaning (Literal): Its initial use was literal, meaning to actually make something dirty, physically stain it, or cover it with dirt. You might have seen this sense used in older literature to describe a knight's armor or a coat being "besmirched" with mud.
Figurative Meaning (Common Today): Very quickly, the word took on its main modern meaning: to metaphorically stain a reputation or character. The idea is that just as a physical stain ruins a clean cloth, a verbal or written accusation ruins a person's good name or honor. This is the sense that is overwhelmingly used today.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Besmirch
Fixed and Common Phrases
These are often used as fixed collocations in journalistic and formal writing.
Besmirch a good name: To damage someone's reputation or honor.
Besmirch the family honor: To bring shame or disgrace upon a family's reputation.
Besmirched by scandal: The condition of a reputation being ruined or stained by a public controversy.
Besmirch the memory of...: To say or do something that dishonors a deceased person.
Original Phrases and Synonymous Idioms
These use "besmirch" or its synonyms to express the common concept of reputational damage.
To drag a name through the mud: An idiom using a synonym (to drag) that means to publicly malign or ruin someone's reputation.
Sully one's record: To damage or spoil a person's previously clean professional or personal history (using the synonym sully).
A career forever besmirched: A description of a professional life permanently tainted by a past mistake or accusation.
To blacken one's character: A common synonymous idiom meaning to ruin or defame a person's reputation.
An attempt to besmirch the truth: A phrase referring to an effort to distort or discredit verifiable facts.
Lest the whole effort be besmirched: A phrase expressing caution against a single action ruining the integrity of a larger project or endeavor.
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of besmirch from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
