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desecrates - 20 thesaurus results
| Main Entry: | desecrate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | abuse, violate |
| Synonyms: | befoul, blaspheme, contaminate, defile, desolate, despoil, devastate, devour, dishonor, mess up*, pervert, pillage, pollute, profane, prostitute, ravage, sack*, spoil, waste, commit sacrilege, depredate, make lose face, spoliate |
| Antonyms: | honor, praise, sanctify |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | abuse |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | physically hurt or injure |
| Synonyms: | beat up, corrupt, cut up*, damage, defile, deprave, desecrate, harm, hose*, impair, maltreat, mar, mess up*, mishandle, mistreat, misuse, molest, oppress, persecute, pollute*, rough up, roughhouse, ruin, shake up*, spoil, taint, total*, victimize, violate, wax*, bang up, bung up, ill-treat |
| Notes: | abuse carries with it some sense of harm; misuse refers to an incorrect use that may not lead to harm to misuse is to use something wrongly, to abuse is to misuse something so badly that you damage it |
| Antonyms: | cherish, defend, help, preserve, protect, respect |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | contaminate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | adulterate |
| Synonyms: | alloy, befoul, corrupt, debase, debauch, defile, deprave, desecrate, dirty, harm, infect, injure, pervert, poison, pollute, profane, soil, spoil, stain, sully, taint, tarnish, vitiate, muck up, radioactivate |
| Antonyms: | clean, cure, heal, purify, sterilize |
| Main Entry: | defile |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | corrupt, violate |
| Synonyms: | abuse, adulterate, befoul, besmirch, contaminate, debase, deflower, degrade, desecrate, dirty, discolor, disgrace, dishonor, hurt, mess up*, molest, pollute, profane, rape, ravish, seduce, shame, smear, soil, stain, sully, taint, tarnish, trash, vitiate, maculate, make foul, muck up*, scuzz up, tar |
| Antonyms: | clean, hallow, honor, purify, sanctify, clease |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | deflower |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | ravish; take away beauty |
| Synonyms: | assault, defile, desecrate, despoil, devour, force, harm, have, mar, molest, outrage, possess, ravage, ravish, ruin, seduce, spoil, violate, deflorate, depredate |
| Main Entry: | desolate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | ravage, destroy |
| Synonyms: | desecrate, despoil, devastate, devour, pillage, plunder, ruin, sack, waste, depopulate, depredate, lay low, lay waste, spoliate |
| Antonyms: | build, construct, improve |
| Main Entry: | despoil |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | ravage, destroy |
| Synonyms: | denude, deprive, desecrate, desolate, devastate, devour, dispossess, divest, loot, maraud, pillage, plunder, raid, rifle, rob, sack, spoil, strip, vandalize, waste, wreak havoc, wreck, depopulate, depredate, spoliate |
| Antonyms: | build, construct, improve |
| Main Entry: | devastate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | demolish, destroy |
| Synonyms: | desecrate, desolate, despoil, devour, level, pillage, plunder, raid, ravage, raze, ruin, sack, smash, spoil, stamp out*, total*, trash*, waste, wreck, depredate, do one in, lay waste, spoliate, take apart, wipe off map |
| Antonyms: | build, construct, enrich, help, improve |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | disgrace |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | bring shame upon |
| Synonyms: | abase, besmirch, blot, debase, defame, defile, degrade, depress, deride, derogate, desecrate, discredit, disfavor, dishonor, disparage, disregard, disrespect, expel, humble, humiliate, libel, lose face, lower, mock, put down, reduce, reproach, ridicule, slander, slur, snub, stain, stigmatize, sully, taint, tar and feather*, tarnish, attaint, give a black eye, take down a peg |
| Antonyms: | esteem, exalt, honor, respect |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | foul |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | make or become dirty |
| Synonyms: | befoul, besmirch, block, catch, choke, clog, contaminate, defile, desecrate, discolor, ensnare, entangle, fill, jam, pollute, profane, smear, smudge, snarl, soil, spot, stain, sully, taint, tarnish, twist, begrime, besmear |
| Antonyms: | clean, purify, sterilize |
| Main Entry: | misuse |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | abuse; apply wrongly |
| Synonyms: | blow*, corrupt, cut up, desecrate, dissipate, exploit, go through, maltreat, maul, mess up*, misapply, mistreat, molest, outrage, pervert, profane, prostitute, run through*, shake up, squander, waste, wrong, brutalize, handle roughly, ill-treat, misemploy |
| Antonyms: | use correctly |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | outrage |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | wrong, offend, abuse |
| Synonyms: | affront, aggrieve, defile, deflower, desecrate, force, incense, infuriate, injure, insult, jar*, madden, maltreat, mistreat, misuse, oppress, persecute, raise Cain*, rape, ravage, ravish, scandalize, shock, spoil, violate, whip up*, boil over*, burn up*, do violence to, fire up, ill- treat, kick up a row, make hit the ceiling, reach boiling point |
| Antonyms: | delight, please, make happy |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | pervert |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | twist, turn away from what is acceptable or correct |
| Synonyms: | abuse, adulterate, alloy, brainwash, color, corrupt, cut*, debase, debauch, demoralize, deprave, desecrate, distort, divert, doctor, fake, falsify, fudge*, garble, misconstrue, misinterpret, misrepresent, misstate, mistreat, misuse, outrage, prostitute, ruin, salt*, seduce, spike, vitiate, warp, water*, animalize, doctor up, phony up |
| Antonyms: | straighten, leave alone |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | pillage |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | plunder, destroy |
| Synonyms: | appropriate, arrogate, confiscate, desecrate, desolate, despoil, devastate, devour, gut, invade, lift*, loot, maraud, nab*, pilfer, pinch*, purloin, raid, ransack, ravage, rifle*, rob, ruin, sack, spoil, steal, strip, thieve, trespass, waste, depredate, lay waste, spoliate |
| Antonyms: | protect, safeguard |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | pollute |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | make dirty; corrupt |
| Synonyms: | adulterate, alloy, befoul, besmirch, contaminate, debase, debauch, defile, deprave, desecrate, dirty, dishonor, foul, infect, mar, poison, profane, soil, spoil, stain, sully, taint, violate, make filthy |
| Antonyms: | clean, cleanse, purify |
| Main Entry: | ravage |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | destroy, ransack |
| Synonyms: | annihilate, break up, capture, consume, cream*, crush, damage, demolish, desecrate, desolate, despoil, devastate, dismantle, disorganize, disrupt, exterminate, extinguish, forage, foray, gut, harry, impair, loot, overrun, overthrow, overwhelm, pillage, pirate, plunder, prey, prostrate, pull down, raid, rape, raze, rob, ruin, sack, seize, shatter, sink, smash, spoil, stamp out, strip, total*, trample, trash, waste, wreak havoc, wreck, wrest, lay waste, leave in ruins, spoliate, sweep away |
| Antonyms: | aid, assist, help, protect |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | ruin |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | devastate, destroy |
| Synonyms: | bankrupt, beggar, botch, break, bring down, bust, crush, decimate, deface, defeat, defile, demolish, deplete, deplore, desecrate, despoil, devour, disfigure, do in*, drain, exhaust, fleece, impoverish, injure, maim, mangle, mar, mutilate, overthrow, overturn, overwhelm, pillage, rape, ravish, raze, reduce, sack, shatter, smash, spoil, total, wipe out*, wrack, wreck, bring to ruin, clean out, depredate, dilapidate, lay waste, make a mess of, pauperize, spoilate, use up, wreak havoc on |
| Antonyms: | build, construct, create, develop, grow |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | sack |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | raid, plunder |
| Synonyms: | demolish, desecrate, desolate, despoil, destroy, devastate, devour, fleece, gut, loot, maraud, pillage, ravage, rifle, rob, ruin, spoil, strip, waste, depredate, lay waste, spoliate |
| Antonyms: | guard, protect, save |
| Main Entry: | spoil |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | ruin, hurt |
| Synonyms: | blemish, damage, debase, deface, defile, demolish, desecrate, desolate, despoil, destroy, devastate, disfigure, disgrace, harm, impair, injure, mar, mess up*, pillage, plunder, prejudice, ravage, sack, smash, squash, tarnish, trash*, undo, upset, vitiate, waste, wreck, depredate, make useless, muck up*, spoliate, take apart |
| Antonyms: | help |
* = informal/non-formal usage
| Main Entry: | violate |
| Part of Speech: | verb |
| Definition: | rape, defile |
| Synonyms: | abuse, assault, befoul, debauch, defile, desecrate, force, invade, outrage, pollute, profane, ravish, spoil |
Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition
Copyright © 2009 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009 by the Philip Lief Group.
Cite This Source
Copyright © 2009, Dictionary.com, LLC. All rights reserved.
