1
as in desecration
an act of great disrespect shown to God or to sacred ideas, people, or things
for two centuries the Christian monasteries in England suffered defilements at the hands of Viking invaders
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in contamination
something that is or that makes impure
souvenir shops, observation towers, and other tacky defilements on Civil War battlefields that should be considered hallowed ground
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defilement
Noun
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To Michael Hirsch, the desecration of hundreds of graves was a shanda, a shame, a ghoulish crime.—
Maria Cramer,
New York Times,
16 Feb. 2025 -
The killing and desecration of Laura continues resonating throughout the original show’s 30 episode run, even as Agent Cooper and the local police branch away from it and begin dealing with local corruption and assorted personal melodramas.—
Matt Zoller Seitz,
Vulture,
16 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Issues ranged from spoilage and chemical concerns to product damage and foreign material contamination.—
Jenna Anderson,
Health,
14 Mar. 2025
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The agency has previously taken action against benzene contamination in other personal-care products, including sunscreens, dry shampoos and hand sanitizers.—
Faisal Kutty,
Newsweek,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Our goal every game is to force our opponents have a shot clock violation (90 seconds).—
Bill Reinhard,
New York Daily News,
15 Mar. 2025
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Here are the inspection scores and violations for restaurants that Tarrant County Public Health (TCPH) inspected for Feb. 23th - March 8th, 2025.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
15 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Women are thought of as contaminants in the heya and arm candy outside it; the sponsors exert a baleful commercial pressure on the fighters.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2025
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Days earlier, the first significant rains since May sent contaminants surging into the ocean.—
Corinne Purtill,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Arguments and accusations of blasphemy regarding teaching yoga sutras rather than Bible scripture are rife within the Black yoga community.—
Tamika Caston-Miller,
Outside Online,
26 Feb. 2025
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Throughout its engagement with the OIC, the special envoy has prioritized the protection of human rights, routinely championing the equal rights of religious minorities and opposing laws that criminalize blasphemy and apostasy.—
Arsalan Suleman,
Foreign Affairs,
24 Aug. 2017
Noun
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Further evidence shows that racial minority groups exposed to pollutants suffer from poor maternal health groups more than others in the United States.—
Tracy J. Wholf,
CBS News,
14 Mar. 2025
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In the wake of the environmental and women’s movements, citizen activists, mothers of children with birth defects and women with breast cancer became alarmed about the threat of cancer linked to pesticides or industrial pollutants.—
Amy Lauren Fairchild,
The Conversation,
11 Mar. 2025
Noun
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But Bondi is also overseeing cuts within her building, including to the Public Integrity Section that takes on corruption cases against public officials, according to multiple media reports and confirmed by a former Justice Department official.—
David Catanese,
Miami Herald,
14 Mar. 2025
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Compassionate Release of Nick Bovis Nick Bovis, a former San Francisco restaurateur, pleaded guilty to Honest Services and Insurance Wire Fraud in a political corruption case.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes,
13 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Such a transformation would represent an irrevocable loss: a profound sacrilege not only to the city’s rich history but also to the cultural legacy for the future generations.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
23 Feb. 2025
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For many liberals and radicals, beginning with Lord Byron, Elgin was a vandal who had committed sacrilege.—
Ralph Leonard,
The Atlantic,
4 Feb. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Defilement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defilement. Accessed 19 Mar. 2025.
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