disfigure
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
-
to spoil the appearance or shape of; deface
-
to mar the effect or quality of
Synonym Usage
See mar.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
disfiguresimple
-
disfiguressimple
-
have disfiguredperfect
-
has disfiguredperfect
-
am disfiguringprogressive
-
are disfiguringprogressive
-
is disfiguringprogressive
-
have been disfiguringperfect progressive
-
has been disfiguringperfect progressive
Past
-
disfiguredsimple
-
had disfiguredperfect
-
was disfiguringprogressive
-
were disfiguringprogressive
-
had been disfiguringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of disfigure
1325–75; Middle English disfiguren < Anglo-French, Old French desfigurer, equivalent to des- dis- 1 + -figurer, verbal derivative of figure figure
Explanation
To disfigure something is to ruin its appearance, which is what would happen if you drew a big bushy mustache and a pair of antennae on the Mona Lisa. Unfortunately, disfigured people are almost always portrayed in the media as villains, or victims. The word does suggest a negative view of someone (after all, it doesn't just mean changing way something looks but specifically spoiling it). Organizations for disfigured people, however, like Changing Faces in England, have claimed the word as their own and use it proudly.
Vocabulary lists containing disfigure
Unit 1: Telling Details
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "D"
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"Wild Animals Aren't Pets" and "Let People Own Exotic Animals"
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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.
See Examples For:
“The bill is allowing things to take place which could disfigure a city like Eagle Rock,” said Quackenbos.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
If a monster like their father can disfigure God, doesn’t his existence pose a threat to a world already under siege?
From Salon ● May 19, 2026
Repeated removal of the tendrils is needed, too, so they don’t disfigure the flowers or stems.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 17, 2024
Yet the addition of modern touches threatens to disfigure the cathedral, according to dozens of cultural figures and intellectuals who have stood up against the proposals.
From New York Times ● Dec. 10, 2021
The flute was invented by Athena, but she threw it away because in order to play it she had to puff out her cheeks and disfigure her face.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
A droll moment of introspection is offered when Gordon disfigures his face with tape.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2026
Ms. Robbie has it easier, thanks to her character’s inherent theatricality—this Elizabeth is a great beauty until smallpox disfigures her face.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 6, 2018
It also raises concerns about epizootic shell disease, which disfigures lobsters to the point that they can’t be sold.
From Washington Times ● May 13, 2018
An orange smear of paint disfigures the walkway next to a garden bench.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 9, 2018
Quote the passage from Seneca's treatise on anger, showing how it disfigures the countenance.
From The Moral Instruction of Children by Adler, Felix
"My operation is scheduled for tomorrow," says the disfigured soldier, still recovering from his terrible injuries.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Ms. Kobza’s opening chapters are disfigured by the melted wax of academic cant.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
Mojtaba Khamenei's message gave no indication of his own physical condition but the Pentagon said Friday he was "wounded" and "likely disfigured".
From Barron's ● Mar. 13, 2026
He loves all disfigured nasties, be they swamp creatures, eyeball-less ogres or bolt-headed Hellboys.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2025
Then the disease passed, leaving its ycrung victims disfigured but alive.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
And he grew that beard—initially to hide disfiguring dental surgery.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 20, 2026
The first patient to receive facial scanning and burn mask treatment, after the 14-month period when Qaradaya’s rehab team was helpless to treat disfiguring facial burns, was a two-year-old child.
From Salon ● Mar. 29, 2025
Best feature went to A Different Man, a thought-provoking movie about a man who has a disfiguring facial condition and drastically changes his appearance.
From BBC ● Dec. 3, 2024
Affecting at least 130,000 Americans, prurigo nodularis causes dozens of extremely itchy and disfiguring bumps, usually on the chest, arms, and legs.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 6, 2024
In Europe, Asia, and Africa smallpox became a constant, terrible presence, infecting almost every child, killing many and leaving others with the disfiguring pockmarks that are its telltale sign.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
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.
