Link Centre Dictionary

tarnish

tar·nish

UK/ˈtɑːnɪʃ/ US/ˈtɑɹnɪʃ/ uncommon
verb (1) noun (1)

verb

1.

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”
Synonyms

noun

1.

Origin

From Middle English ternysshen, from Old French terniss-, stem of ternir (“to make dim, make wan”), borrowed from Old High German *ternen, tarnen, from Proto-West Germanic *darnijan (“to conceal”). Doublet of dern and darn.

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WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.