All 4 Uses of
defile
in
Brave New World
- "Orgy-porgy!" said Bernard, interrupting the reading with a loud, unpleasant laugh.
...
He was revenging himself on his two friends for liking one another more than they liked him.
...
It was simple and, since both Helmholtz and the Savage were dreadfully pained by the shattering and defilement of a favourite poetic crystal, extremely effective.
p. 183..9defilement = to dirty the beauty or purity of something
- ...that beautiful, beautiful Other Place, whose memory, as of a heaven, a paradise of goodness and loveliness, he still kept whole and intact, undefiled by contact with the reality of this real London, these actual civilized men and women.
p. 201..6undefiled = unspoiledstandard prefix: The prefix "un-" in undefiled means not and reverses the meaning of defiled. This is the same pattern you see in words like unhappy, unknown, and unlucky.
- Like maggots they had swarmed defilingly over the mystery of Linda's death.
p. 209..3 *defilingly = in a manner that dirtied the beauty or purity of something
- "I ate civilization." ... "It poisoned me; I was defiled."
p. 241..8defiled = made more dirty and impure
Definition:
-
(defile as in: it was defiled) to spoil the beauty or purity of somethingin various senses, including:
- pollute a pristine lake
- harm a reputation or good name
- damage or disrespect something sacred
- take a person's virginity in a disrespectful way