sullied
Dragged through mud
Sullied is the past tense of sully, meaning to stain, tarnish, or damage something's purity or reputation.
What gets sullied is typically abstract—honor, reputation, innocence: a sullied name, Her record was sullied by the scandal.
The word carries a literary or formal tone, suggesting contamination of something once clean or unblemished.
Damaged or disfigured
- flawedHaving faults or imperfections
- imperfectHaving flaws or faults
- spoiledRuined or overindulged
- damagedMade worse by injury
scarred · spotted · mottled · blotted · disfigured · impaired · tainted · stained
Reduced in worth
- pervertedMorally corrupted or distorted
- defiledMade foul or impure
- pollutedMade impure by contaminants
- contaminatedMade impure by contact
degraded · vitiated · adulterated · desecrated · profaned · poisoned · infected · impure
Brought into shame
- shamedMade to feel disgrace
- discreditedProven unworthy of trust
- humiliatedMade to feel worthless
- stigmatizedMarked with social shame
scandalized · degraded · besmirched · tainted · disparaged · vilified · defamed · slandered
marred
Damaged or disfigured
damaged · scarred · spotted · mottled · blotted · disfigured · impaired · tainted · stained · marked
debased
Reduced in worth
- pervertedMorally corrupted or distorted
- defiledMade foul or impure
- pollutedMade impure by contaminants
contaminated · degraded · vitiated · adulterated · desecrated · profaned · poisoned · infected · impure · fouled
disgraced
Brought into shame
- shamedMade to feel disgrace
- discreditedProven unworthy of trust
- humiliatedMade to feel worthless
stigmatized · scandalized · degraded · besmirched · tainted · disparaged · vilified · defamed · slandered · maligned
smudge
Unclear dirty mark
soot · grease · dirt · inkblot · bloodstain · wine · coffee · oil · rust · sweat
besmirched
Made morally dirty
dimmed · discolored · oxidized · faded · clouded · marred · spoiled · corroded · degraded · weathered
- reputationreputation, reputable, bad reputation, repute, disreputable
- taintedtainted, contaminated, corrupted, polluted, poisoned
- cleanlinessclean, cleanliness, clean up, dirty, neatness
- diminisheddevalued, lessened, decreased, depreciated, reduced
- outcastsoutcast, pariah, pariahs, outcasts, outlaws
- moral decaymoral decay, moral decline, moral collapse, moral bankruptcy, degeneration
sulliedunsullied
Not made impure
unblemished · untarnished · pure · immaculate · spotless