mar
verb (used with object)
to damage or spoil to a certain extent; render less perfect, attractive, useful, etc.; impair or spoil.
mar
1 American
[mahr]
/ mɑr /
verb (used with object)
-
mars,
present (3rd person singular)
-
marred,
past participle, past
-
marring
present participle
-
to damage or spoil to a certain extent; render less perfect, attractive, useful, etc.; impair or spoil.
That billboard mars the view. The holiday was marred by bad weather.
-
to disfigure, deface, or scar.
The scratch marred the table.
mar.
2
American
abbreviation
-
maritime.
-
married.
Mar.
3
American
abbreviation
M.A.R.
4
American
abbreviation
mar
1
British
/ mɑː /
verb
noun
Mar
2
British
abbreviation
Usage
What does mar mean? To mar something is to damage, spoil, deface, disfigure, or scar it—either literally (such as by scratching or making a mark on an object) or figuratively (such as by spoiling a party by getting into an argument). Mar is used somewhat more formally than many of its synonyms. Whether used literally or figuratively, it always refers to spoiling something by making it worse or less perfect than it was. Its figurative sense is more often used in writing (especially journalism) than in everyday speech. Mar can also be used as a noun, meaning a blemish, but this is less common. Example: The senator’s campaign event was unfortunately marred by people who wanted to disrupt the event by interrupting her speech.
Synonym Usage
Mar, deface, disfigure, deform agree in applying to some form of injury. Mar is general, but usually refers to an external or surface injury, if it is a physical one: The tabletop was marred by dents and scratches. Deface refers to a surface injury that may be temporary or easily repaired: a tablecloth defaced by penciled notations. Disfigure applies to external injury of a more permanent and serious kind: A birthmark disfigured one side of his face. Deform suggests that something has been distorted or internally injured so severely as to change its normal form or qualities, or else that some fault has interfered with its proper development: deformed by an accident that had crippled him; to deform feet by binding them.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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marsimple
-
marssimple
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have marredperfect
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has marredperfect
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am marringprogressive
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are marringprogressive
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is marringprogressive
-
have been marringperfect progressive
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has been marringperfect progressive
Past
-
marredsimple
-
had marredperfect
-
was marringprogressive
-
were marringprogressive
-
had been marringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of mar
First recorded before 900; Middle English merren, Old English merran “to hinder, waste”; cognate with Old Saxon merrian, Old High German merren “to hinder,” Old Norse merja “to bruise,” Gothic marzjan “to offend”
Explanation
A mar is a flaw, mark, or blemish, like a deep scratch on a wooden table. As a verb, to mar is to make such an imperfection — like the pen mark that mars your crisp, white shirt. We often think of things that mar as immediately noticeable, like scratches, scars, and blemishes, but sometimes mar describes other ways of ruining something. For example, an unexpected run-in with a difficult person can mar your relaxing day at the beach, just as an unpleasant memory can mar a peaceful state of mind. The thing to remember is, it only takes one scratch, one mean comment, or one negative experience to mar something that is otherwise fine.
Vocabulary lists containing mar
ASVAB Word Knowledge
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"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act II
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act V
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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:
On the other hand, he is heavily invested in the tournament's success – and may take special efforts to avoid the kind of diplomatic incidents that could mar proceedings.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026
But no bullet holes mar the walls of any of the houses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
Gilded fixtures, trim and ornamentation — rumored to be from Home Depot — mar the walls.
From Salon ● Jan. 4, 2026
Unless the adviser followed all compliance protocols and properly documented all client communication regarding past trades and financial transactions, the dispute can mar their record.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 12, 2025
“The girl has learned her lesson. Make her clean up the mess and let her be. It is distressing to me to see such a scene. It might mar our child.”
From "Copper Sun" by Sharon M. Draper
The forests come down nearly to the beach, which is covered with thickets of mangroves, avicennias, manchineel-trees, and that species of suriana which the natives call romero de la mar.*
From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 1 by Thomasina Ross
VIII., is this singular entry:—"Robarde Holte of Stubley, hase mar. an ould woman, by whom he hase none issewe, and therefore he wolde not have her name entryed."
From Traditions of Lancashire, Volume 2 by John Roby
Roxie Shaia threw for four touchdowns in 20-18 loss to Corona del Mar. Next: Monday at Fountain Valley.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
The period covers most of the stock market’s resurgence off its Mar. 30 trough, as investors welcomed a ceasefire in the Iran war, renewed bets on AI trades, and welcomed an upbeat corporate earnings season.
From MarketWatch ● May 19, 2026
Coming into Monday trading, shares were down more than 40% since the company reported results on Mar. 24.
From Barron's ● Mar. 30, 2026
After the fuel tank strike on Mar. 16, Dubai—one of seven emirates and the UAE’s commercial hub—has sought to reassure passengers, declaring flights in and out of its airports to be safe.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 22, 2026
By the statue hangs a faded banner: Bolivia Mar. When Bolivia declared its independence it had a territorial pseudopod that extended southwest from its Andean heartland through the Atacama Desert to the sea.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Ye knaw the kingis hwnting vill be schortly, and than sall be best tyme, as M.A.R. has asswred me, that my Lo. has resolved to interpryse that matter.
From James VI and the Gowrie Mystery by Andrew Lang
Indeid M.A.R. spak with me fowr or fywe dayis syn, and I hew promised his Lo. ane answar within ten dayis at farrest.
From James VI and the Gowrie Mystery by Andrew Lang
But at Friday's hearing in Mar del Plata, all criminal proceedings were suspended against the couple.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
Should he win the $300,000 Del Mar Handicap, Gold Phoenix will join the legendary Kelso as the only horses to win the same major stakes race on this continent in five straight years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
Division 2 champion Corona del Mar, which brings back every starter but one, including player of the year Addison Stern and receivers Mia Balabanian and AnnaSofia Dickens.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
The fire has "surpassed all possible and imaginable limits," said Mar Nicolas, mayor of the nearby small town of Brunete, which is hosting around a hundred evacuees.
From Barron's ● Jul. 25, 2026
Maybe Milagro del Mar had been spared the tidal waves and Papi was all right.
From "The Dead and the Gone" by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Now a new Federal Rule of Civil Procedure adopted by the Judicial Conference of the U.S. will discourage some of the litigation abuse that mars mass torts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025
And despite already being a sap, I was extra fortunate to find director Guan Hu’s Chinese drama almost completely free of the sentiment that mars most animal movies.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2024
And it’s not just in the setup — evasion mars this memoir throughout.
From New York Times ● Mar. 28, 2023
It really mars what is otherwise a striking finish.
From The Verge ● Jul. 14, 2022
Occasionally, a twitch of his hand or arm mars what he is doing, but in a little while he is able to twist off a section of the dough and fashion it into a roll.
From "Flowers for Algernon" by Daniel Keyes
But his premiership was marred by his own corruption scandals, and no one sees him as a solution.
From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026
Professor Inger Brodey alleged that the school’s hiring was marred by “improprieties, slander, vindictiveness and manipulation” and accused Mr. Atkins of hiring “candidates who conform to unspoken, homogenous, ideological criteria.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Celtic and Rangers have both been ordered to play their next home Scottish Cup matches behind closed doors after last season's quarter-final was marred by fan disorder.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
International observers of Zambia's elections said Saturday the poll was marred by claims of intimidation, abductions and an hours-long pause in the vote count.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
The hammer’s head—a thick metal block marred with pits and scrapes—began to glow with blazing, red-hot light, and John pressed it against a tangle of roots.
From "Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky" by Kwame Mbalia
Heavy, acrid smoke blanketed the eastern United States on Saturday, marring preparations for the weekend's highly awaited World Cup final to be held in an open stadium in New Jersey.
From Barron's ● Jul. 18, 2026
A cycle of ephemeral emperors, military mutinies and civil wars had begun, marring Rome’s third century.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
Sandisk’s stock is off fractionally on Tuesday, with the report hardly marring the first anniversary of the split.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 24, 2026
In Shasta and Nevada counties, flecks of ink marring the bar codes printed on some ballots prevented voting machines made by Hart InterCivic from correctly reading those ballots.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2024
Not even a stationer’s imprint marring the surface.
From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern
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.
