disfigure

[dis-fig-yer, dis-fig-er]

verb (used with object)

disfigured, disfiguring 

1. to mar the appearance or beauty of; deform; deface.

   Our old towns are increasingly disfigured by tasteless new buildings.

   Synonyms: blemish, spoil
   Antonyms: beautify

2. to mar the effect or excellence of.

   His reputation was disfigured by instances of political favoritism.

disfigure

/ dɪsˈfɪɡə /

verb

1. to spoil the appearance or shape of; deface

2. to mar the effect or quality of

Other Word Forms

• disfigurer noun
• undisfigured adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of disfigure¹

1325–75; Middle English disfiguren < Anglo-French, Old French desfigurer, equivalent to des- dis- ¹ + -figurer, verbal derivative of figure figure

Synonym Study

See mar.

Example Sentences

One of the bodies had been decapitated - others were "totally disfigured", he said.

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Branded as disfigured or cursed, they faced prejudice even in their homeland.

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The investigators also said Goncalves' face was "disfigured" from her wounds.

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A few years later, while operating a press machine at a baseball glove factory, Lee suffered an accident that permanently disfigured his left arm.

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They warn that not only liberals but also libertarians and free-market conservatives have disfigured civic and institutional order.

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Related Words

• deform 
• distort 
• maim 
• mangle 
• mar 
• mutilate 
• scar