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
Sarit and Itamar opted to leave the onion on the grill to blacken thoroughly — but only on the surface.
From Salon • Dec. 2, 2021
They’ll take anywhere from three to seven days to blacken, depending on how warm your kitchen is.
From New York Times • Aug. 6, 2021
When the flames had licked at Rattleshirt, the ruby at her throat had grown so hot that she had feared her own flesh might start to smoke and blacken.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
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.
