EN

Synonyms for taint

  • verb
  • noun

Most common

poison sully pollute contaminate blow upon infect

Synonyms by meaning

Verb

1. Contaminate

contaminate, sully, corrupt, poison, pollute, defile, tarnish, besmirch, stain, shame, vitiate, dirty, dishonor US, dishonour UK, disgrace, debase, blacken, tinge, blemish, discolor US, discolour UK, fault, flaw, smut

Other

infect, blow upon, disease, leaven, tincture, imbue, leper dated rare

Noun

1. Contamination — A contamination, decay or putrefaction, especially in food

contamination, pollution, defilement, impurity, infection, pollutant, adulterant, filth, contaminant, sophisticant dated

Other

contagion, stigma

Definitions

  1. v. 1

    To contaminate or corrupt (something) with an external agent, either physically or morally.

  2. n. 1

    A contamination, decay or putrefaction, especially in food.

Forms

Plural
taints → contaminations, pollutions, defilements, impurities…
Past participle
tainted
e.g. tainted → contaminated, sullied, corrupted, poisoned…

Choose the right word

Taint, Blemish, Flaw, Blot or Stain?

A blemish is superficial; a flaw or taint is in structure or substance. In the moral sense, we speak of a blot or stain upon reputation; a flaw or taint in character.

J. C. Fernald, English Synonyms and Antonyms (1914)

Example sentences

  • poison This transparent liquid contains a kind of poison.
  • sully I wouldn't want to sully your good name.
  • pollute Travelling by bus or bike, you could pollute less.
  • contaminate Cars with heat engines contaminate a lot.
  • infect The virus can easily infect a healthy person.

Popularity over time

Word1850 → 2019Trend
taintsteady
poisonrising
sullyrising
pollutesteady
contaminatesteady

Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.

By length

4 letters
flaw1, smut1
5 letters
fault1, shame1, dirty2, stain1, filth1, sully2, tinge1, leper2, imbue2
6 letters
poison2, stigma2, infect2, defile, leaven2, debase2
7 letters
disease2, corrupt2, pollute2, tarnish2, blemish2, blacken2, vitiate3
8 letters
disgrace2, dishonor3, tincture2, impurity4, discolor3, besmirch
9 letters
infection3, pollution3, contagion3, dishonour, pollutant3, discolour
10 letters
defilement, adulterant
11 letters
contaminate4, contaminant4
12 letters
sophisticant
13 letters
contamination5

The small number after each word is its number of syllables (dirty2 = 2 syllables).