verb
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to make or become black or dirty
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(tr) to defame; slander (esp in the phrase blacken someone's name )
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of blacken
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at black, -en 1
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.
A new scientific review suggests that Polygonum multiflorum, a root used in traditional Chinese medicine for more than a thousand years to "blacken hair and nourish essence," could be a promising alternative for managing AGA.
From Science Daily • Feb. 9, 2026
These incidents may temporarily blacken the eyes of the NBA and Major League Baseball but sports gambling is here to stay.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 5, 2025
She’s prepared to leave immediately should the fire worsen or smoke blacken the sky.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 12, 2022
Other than that, their meat was a pinch drier than some of the other methods, and their skin got crispy in spots but began to blacken in others before it could become consistently golden.
From Salon • Feb. 12, 2022
I imagine a raven sitting on Daniela's shoulder, and I blacken her hair to match its wings.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
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.
