See taint in Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus II
verb
To become or cause to become rotten or unsound:
break down, decay, decompose, deteriorate, disintegrate, molder, putrefy, rot, spoil, turn. Idioms: go bad, go to pot, go to seed. See better, thriveTo make morally impure:
contaminate, corrupt, defile, infect, pollute, soil. See cleanTo contaminate the reputation of:
befoul, besmear, besmirch, bespatter, blacken, cloud, denigrate, dirty, smear, smudge, smut, soil, spatter, stain, sully, tarnish. Idioms: give a black eye to, sling (or throw) mud on. See attack, clean
noun
A mark of discredit or disgrace:
black eye, blemish, blot, onus, spot, stain, stigma, tarnish. (Archaic) attaint. Idiom: a blot on one's escutcheon. See marks, respect
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