noun
verb
Related Words
See defect.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of blemish
1275–1325; Middle English (v.) < Anglo-French, Middle French blemiss-, long stem of ble ( s ) mir to make livid, perhaps < Old Low Franconian *blesmjan; see blaze 2
Explanation
A blemish is a small flaw. If you borrow your brother's brand new bicycle, you'd better be careful — what might seem like the tiniest blemish to you might be a horribly ruined paint job to him. The classic example of a blemish is a pimple or other mark on your skin, but you can call any small defect a blemish — like a worm hole in an apple or a scrape on the side of your car. A flaw or fault in your personality or morals can also be called a blemish. You might say that the one time your dog accidentally nipped you is the only blemish on his reputation as a sweet, gentle pet.
Vocabulary lists containing blemish
"The Landlady" by Roald Dahl
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List 6
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "B"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Bad scripts may include self-defeating "games" such as "Kick Me," a gambit of the self-pitying, and "Blemish," the ploy of people who compensate for inferiority feelings by pointing out the failings of others.
From Time Magazine Archive
The Blemish of Fergus But it is hard for a mortal to get the better of Fairyland—a touch of hidden malice lurks in magical gifts, and so it proved now.
From Myths & Legends of the Celtic Race by Rolleston, T. W. (Thomas William)
There is no Blemish to be observed in Virgil under this Head, and but a very few in Milton.
From The Spectator, Volume 2. by Addison, Joseph
Blemish, blem′ish, n. a stain or defect: reproach.—v.t. to mark with any deformity: to tarnish: to defame.—n.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
I had no Estate but what I sold, and gave to a Courtier to get this Regiment, after I had served many Years as a Captain, without the least Blemish in my Character.
From A Voyage to Cacklogallinia With a Description of the Religion, Policy, Customs and Manners of That Country by Brunt, Captain Samuel
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
