as in to stain
to make dirty
she accidentally smudged her collar with the lipstick
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in stain
a mark of guilt or disgrace
the president's spouse must not have the slightest smudge of scandal
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of smudge
Felicity Carter, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
Onstage as the lead singer of Hole, her red lipstick was smeared; her eyeliner was smudged; and her tiara, off-kilter.
—Christina Pérez, Vogue, 28 Oct. 2024
Mia Meltzer, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2024
Flushing toilets, applying makeup and hairspray, or taking a hot shower (and, sometimes, forgetting to turn the exhaust fan on) create more opportunities for the walls to collect dirt, stains, smudges, and more.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for smudge 
Verb
And there’s endless ways to use these — along your lashline, in your waterline, create a wing or smudge it out.
—Felicity Carter, Forbes, 28 Oct. 2024
Onstage as the lead singer of Hole, her red lipstick was smeared; her eyeliner was smudged; and her tiara, off-kilter.
—Christina Pérez, Vogue, 28 Oct. 2024
Noun
This waterproof mascara has a long-lasting color that resists smudges and clumps throughout the day.
—Mia Meltzer, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2024
Flushing toilets, applying makeup and hairspray, or taking a hot shower (and, sometimes, forgetting to turn the exhaust fan on) create more opportunities for the walls to collect dirt, stains, smudges, and more.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for smudge
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smudge
Verb
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Sometimes, traffickers stain ivory to look like wood or coat it in chocolate to make it through inspections.Ashley Strickland, CNN, 2 Nov. 2024
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A number of the belongings appeared to be stained with blood.Tim Madigan, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Same as Papen, Tartt felt the blight and taint of her origins.Lili Anolik, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
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Frost ruined Pasquet’s entire crop in 2021, and his 2022 vintage was more limited than usual because of smoke taint from forest fires in the region.Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen, Robb Report, 27 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Instead, Walz seems to have little to say about factory farming dirtying the state’s waterways.Kenny Torrella, Vox, 7 Dec. 2018
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Garments can be dirtied again by the elements if air-dried outside.Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 23 July 2024
Noun
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First, blot as much of the area as possible when something spills to remove excess moisture.Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Oct. 2024
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Not a single blot of paint in the Tate Modern repels the female soul, though the £84 annual membership fee may dissuade some female wallets.Andrea Long Chu, Vulture, 28 June 2024
Verb
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Characters like Felix and Oswald have kind of an unfortunate connection to theater insofar as they’re associated with blackface minstrelsy—the notoriously racist form of stage performance where actors would blacken their faces, wear white gloves, and perform clownish antics.Tim Brinkhof, JSTOR Daily, 9 Oct. 2024
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Eventually, Dad needed to referee, settling disputes and trying to end things before noses were bloodied and eyes were blackened.Chad Graff, The Athletic, 12 Aug. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Smudge.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smudge. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
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