deface
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to mar the surface or appearance of; disfigure.
to deface a wall by writing on it.
- Synonyms:
- spoil
-
to efface, obliterate, or injure the surface of, as to make illegible or invalid.
to deface a bond.
verb
Related Words
See mar.
Other Word Forms
- defaceable adjective
- defacement noun
- defacer noun
- undefaceable adjective
- undefaced adjective
Etymology
Origin of deface
1275–1325; Middle English defacen, from Old French desfacier, equivalent to des- dis- 1 + facier ( face face + -ier infinitive suffix)
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.
He even intends to deface the entire White House complex with a 90,000-square-foot ballroom, Versailles as reimagined by Tony Soprano.
From Salon • Aug. 9, 2025
If we build it, they will deface it.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2024
“This way it is not possible to deface or remove them,” Tsadik said.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 31, 2023
Donya says people in Tehran continue to deface government billboards and to write "#Mahsa" and "Woman, Life, Freedom" - the rallying cry of the protests - on walls, mostly on the subway.
From BBC • Sep. 15, 2023
“Well, no one said not to deface the mountain.”
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
