4 uses
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Definition
to spoil the beauty or purity of something
in 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
- Tell me, can he be allowed to go on defiling the earth?Book 2 — An Unfortunate Gathering (69% in)
- Miuesov was on the point of shouting, but he suddenly checked himself, and said with contempt, "You defile everything you touch."Book 2 — An Unfortunate Gathering (19% in)
- Meanwhile, in their solitude, they keep the image of Christ fair and undefiled, in the purity of God's truth, from the times of the Fathers of old, the Apostles and the martyrs.Book 6 — The Russian Monk (72% in)
- Man, do not pride yourself on superiority to the animals; they are without sin, and you, with your greatness, defile the earth by your appearance on it, and leave the traces of your foulness after you—alas, it is true of almost every one of us!Book 6 — The Russian Monk (87% in)
There are no more uses of "defile" in The Brothers Karamazov.
Typical Usage
(best examples)