deface

[ dih-feys ]

/ dɪˈfeɪs /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR deface ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), de·faced, de·fac·ing.

to mar the surface or appearance of; disfigure: to deface a wall by writing on it.

to efface, obliterate, or injure the surface of, as to make illegible or invalid: to deface a bond.

RELATED WORDS

impairment, disfigurement, vandalism

Nearby words

Origin of deface

1275–1325; Middle English defacen < Old French desfacier, equivalent to des- dis-¹ + facier (face face + -ier infinitive suffix)

SYNONYMS FOR deface

1. spoil. See mar.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR deface ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

de·face·a·ble, adjectivede·face·ment, nounde·fac·er, nounun·de·face·a·ble, adjective

un·de·faced, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for defacement

By the following simple method this can be done without any injury or defacement of the ivory.
Miss Leslie's Lady's New Receipt-Book|Eliza Leslie
The Journal had been calling the attention of its readers to the defacement of the landscape by billboard advertisers.
The Americanization of Edward Bok|Edward William Bok
In England, the purpose of the defacement marks is primarily to prevent the stamp being used again.
Her Majesty's Mails|William Lewins
It was its extreme hardness that saved it from destruction and defacement.
Beauties and Antiquities of Ireland|T. O. Russell

They are never disfigured with vile language or other defacement.
Farm Boys and Girls|William Arch McKeever

British Dictionary definitions for defacement

deface

/ (dɪˈfeɪs) /

verb

(tr) to spoil or mar the surface, legibility, or appearance of; disfigure

Derived Formsdefaceable, adjectivedefacement, noundefacer, noun

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

Word Origin and History for defacement

defacement

1560s, from deface + -ment.

deface

mid-14c., "to obliterate," from Old French desfacier "mutilate, destroy, disfigure," from des- "away from" (see dis-) + Vulgar Latin *facia (see face (n.)). Weaker sense of "to mar, make ugly" is late 14c. in English. Related: Defaced; defacing.