befile en · VERB
Etymology
From Middle English befilen, from Old English befȳlan (“to befoul, defile, make dirty”), from Proto-West Germanic *bifūlijan (“to make foul”), equivalent to be- + file. Cognate with Scots befile (“to befile”), West Frisian befûlje (“to dirty”), Dutch bevuilen (“to soil, dirty”), German Low German befulen (“to soil, pollute”). See also defile.
Meanings
- (dialectal, obsolete, transitive) To make filthy; befoul; soil.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| befiles | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic | |
| befiled | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| befiled | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| befiling | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic |
Synonyms
smirch · sullow · blot · befoul · befile · blacken · soil · uggle · defile · imbrue (especially with blood) · besmear · darken · beray · soss · gunk up · inquinate · dirty · foil · bedizen · befoul · beclart · bedaub · tarnish · gunk · smear · dirten · slotter · besmirch · sling mud · smut · slur · sully · bedirty · befilth · assoil · defile · beshit · besully · scunge · elt · smudge · blur · foul · contaminate · smutch · begrime · bewray · file · foul · clat · spot · stain · sowl