disfigure

[dis-fig-yer; British dis-fig-er]

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verb (used with object), dis·fig·ured, dis·fig·ur·ing.

to mar the appearance or beauty of; deform; deface: Our old towns are increasingly disfigured by tasteless new buildings.

to mar the effect or excellence of: His reputation was disfigured by instances of political favoritism.

Origin of disfigure

1325–75; Middle English disfiguren < Anglo-French, Old French desfigurer, equivalent to des- dis-¹ + -figurer, verbal derivative of figure figure

Related formsdis·fig·ur·er, nounun·dis·fig·ured, adjective

Synonyms for disfigure

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1. spoil, blemish. See mar.

Antonyms for disfigure

1. beautify.

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

Related Words for disfigure

scar, deform, distort, mar, maim, mutilate, mangle, deface, defile, blemish, injure, damage, hurt, disfeature

Examples from the Web for disfigure

Historical Examples of disfigure

The hideous monstrosities of post-Reformation times did not then disfigure our churches.
English Villages
P. H. Ditchfield
The happy-go-lucky Venetian methods were no longer to disfigure the country.
The Birth of Yugoslavia, Volume 1
Henry Baerlein
There is no rise and fall of tide in these regions to disfigure the shore with mud.
The Riddle of the Sands
Erskine Childers
Not infrequently is it true that the style of dress seems to disfigure.
The Bibliotaph
Leon H. Vincent
But, dear, dear, what a pity it is that you should go and disfigure yourselves like this!
Glyn Severn's Schooldays
George Manville Fenn

British Dictionary definitions for disfigure

disfigure

verb (tr)

to spoil the appearance or shape of; deface

to mar the effect or quality of

Derived Formsdisfigurer, 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 disfigure

late 14c., from Old French desfigurer "disfigure, alter, disguise, destroy," from Medieval Latin diffigurare, from Latin dis- (see dis-) + figura "figure," from figurare "to figure" (see figure (n.)). Related: Disfigured; disfiguring.