Defile vs. Sully — What's the Difference?

To make filthy or dirty; pollute

To mar the cleanness or luster of; soil or stain.

To debase the pureness or excellence of; corrupt

To defile; taint

To profane or sully (a reputation, for example).

Something that stains or spots.

To make unclean or unfit for ceremonial use; desecrate

(transitive) To soil or stain; to dirty.

To have sexual intercourse with (a woman who is a virgin).

(transitive) To corrupt or damage.

To move in single file or in files or columns

To become soiled or tarnished.

A narrow gorge or pass that restricts lateral movement, as of troops.

A blemish.

A march in a line.

To soil; to dirty; to spot; to tarnish; to stain; to darken; - used literally and figuratively; as, to sully a sword; to sully a person's reputation.

(transitive)

To become soiled or tarnished.

To make (someone or something) physically dirty or unclean; to befoul, to soil.

Soil; tarnish; stain.

To make (someone or something) morally impure or unclean; to corrupt, to tarnish.

United States painter (born in England) of portraits and historical scenes (1783-1872)

To act inappropriately towards or vandalize (something sacred or special); to desecrate, to profane.

French statesman (1560-1641)

(religion) To cause (something or someone) to become ritually unclean.

Place under suspicion or cast doubt upon;

(obsolete)

Make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; also used metaphorically;

To become dirty or unclean.

Charge falsely or with malicious intent; attack the good name and reputation of someone;

To cause uncleanliness; specifically, to pass feces; to defecate.

To march in a single file or line; to file.

To march across (a place) in files or lines.

Synonym of defilade

A narrow passage or way (originally (military), one which soldiers could only march through in a single file or line), especially a narrow gorge or pass between mountains.

(military)

An act of marching in files or lines.

A single file of soldiers; (by extension) any single file.

An act of defilading a fortress or other place, or of raising the exterior works in order to protect the interior.

To march off in a line, file by file; to file off.

Same as Defilade.

To make foul or impure; to make filthy; to dirty; to befoul; to pollute.

To soil or sully; to tarnish, as reputation; to taint.

To injure in purity of character; to corrupt.

To corrupt the chastity of; to debauch; to violate; to rape.

To make ceremonially unclean; to pollute.

Any narrow passage or gorge in which troops can march only in a file, or with a narrow front; a long, narrow pass between hills, rocks, etc.

The act of defilading a fortress, or of raising the exterior works in order to protect the interior. See Defilade.

A narrow pass (especially one between mountains)

Place under suspicion or cast doubt upon;

Make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; also used metaphorically;

Spot, stain, or pollute;