"defiles" in the noun sense

1. defile, gorge

a narrow pass (especially one between mountains)

"defiles" in the verb sense

1. defile, sully, corrupt, taint, cloud

place under suspicion or cast doubt upon

"sully someone's reputation"

2. tarnish, stain, maculate, sully, defile

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

"The silver was tarnished by the long exposure to the air"

"Her reputation was sullied after the affair with a married man"

3. foul, befoul, defile, maculate

spot, stain, or pollute

"The townspeople defiled the river by emptying raw sewage into it"

Source: WordNet® (An amazing lexical database of English)

Princeton University "About WordNet®."
WordNet®. Princeton University. 2010.

View WordNet® License