blacken

verb

black·en ˈbla-kən

blackened; blackening ˈblak-niŋ

ˈbla-kə-

intransitive verb

: to become dark or black

the sky blackens

transitive verb

: to make black

: defame, sully

blackened her reputation

blackener

ˈblak-nər

ˈbla-kə-

noun

Example Sentences

Fire had blackened the field. The sky blackened as the storm approached. Their false accusations failed to blacken my reputation. a presidency blackened by scandal

Recent Examples on the Web Colleagues also accused Baribeau of pushing to keep patients alive for 30 days on life-support, including one man who was unconscious and whose chest tissue had allegedly begun to blacken and die due to lack of blood flow.

Liz Kowalczyk, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Oct. 2022 Using tongs, rotate them and broil until the peppers blacken all around.

G. Daniela Galarza, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2022 The smoke from the prescribed burns would blacken the ground and cause concern about the town’s appearance.

AZCentral.com, 23 June 2022 Place unpeeled garlic cloves in skillet toast until skin begins to blacken in places, 10 minutes.

Kathleen Squires, WSJ, 16 June 2022 Mark Werksman, his defense lawyer, argued Wednesday that the witnesses would confuse the jury and serve merely to blacken his reputation.

Gene Maddaus, Variety, 11 May 2022 At the same time, in a somewhat obvious parallel, Nang’s father’s toe begins to blacken with gangrene that threatens to creep up his leg.

Jessica Kiang, Variety, 22 Sep. 2021 For years, Williams has worn sunglasses at all hours, as if to blacken her vision.

Katy Waldman, The New Yorker, 20 Sep. 2021 Because of the high sugar content, the blends will blacken and burn into the meat if left too long in the grill or in the oven.

Chuck Blount, San Antonio Express-News, 14 Sep. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'blacken.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.