DEFINITIONS
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blacken

[ blak-uhn ]
/ ˈblæk ən /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR blacken ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to make black; darken.
to speak evil of; defame: to blacken a person's reputation.

verb (used without object)

to grow or become black.

Words related to blacken

blot, smudge, tarnish, sully, stain, soil, befoul, shade, deepen, cloud, begrime, ink, ebonize, defile, decry, traduce, knock, slur, blotch, malign

Words nearby blacken

blackcap, blackcock, blackcod, blackcurrant, blackdamp, blacken, blackened, blackett, blackface, blackfellow, blackfellow's bread

Origin of blacken

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at black, -en1

OTHER WORDS FROM blacken

black·en·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Examples from the Web for blacken

British Dictionary definitions for blacken

blacken
/ (ˈblækən) /

verb

to make or become black or dirty
(tr) to defame; slander (esp in the phrase blacken someone's name)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012