Stain > define
- (n.) Taint of guilt; tarnish; disgrace; reproach.
- (n.) A discoloration by foreign matter; a spot; as, a stain on a garment or cloth.
- (n.) Cause of reproach; shame.
- (n.) A natural spot of a color different from the gound.
- (v.t.) To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth or the like, by processess affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as, to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass.
- (v.t.) To discolor by the application of foreign matter; to make foul; to spot; as, to stain the hand with dye; armor stained with blood.
- (v.t.) To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish.
- (v.t.) To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison.
- (v.i.) To give or receive a stain; to grow dim.
- (n.) A tincture; a tinge.
by Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
noun
- A soiled or discolored appearance.
- usage: "the wine left a dark stain"
- synonyms: discoloration, discolouration
- Microscopy) a dye or other coloring material that is used in microscopy to make structures visible. (
- The state of being covered with unclean things.
- A symbol of disgrace or infamy."And the Lord set a mark upon Cain-Genesis
- An act that brings discredit to the person who does it.
- usage: "he made a huge blot on his copybook"
verb
- Color with a liquid dye or tint.
- usage: "Stain this table a beautiful walnut color"; "people knew how to stain glass a beautiful blue in the middle ages"
- Produce or leave stains.
- usage: "Red wine stains the table cloth"
- Make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; also used metaphorically.
- usage: "The silver was tarnished by the long exposure to the air"; "Her reputation was sullied after the affair with a married man"
- Color for microscopic study.
- usage: "The laboratory worker dyed the specimen"
by WordNet 3.0 © 2006 by Princeton University