Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to tarnish reputation

to tarnish reputation

3 6.0
Damage the respect and good opinion people have of someone or something
  • phrasal verb
  • /ˈtɑrnɪʃ rɪˈpjuːteɪʃən/
translation icon : dañar la reputación
  • A scandal involving improper payments could seriously tarnish the company's reputation.

I I don't think anyone's going to tarnish Pep's reputation.

Examples

  • China's investments in Sudan, for example, have tarnished its international reputation.

    Academic text (2008)

  • You've tarnished the paper's reputation.

    All About Steve (2009)

  • Of course it tarnishes the school's reputation.

    Blog text (32)

  • This, at the very least, tarnishes the reputation of the non-profit she worked for.

    Blog text (11)

  • This sort of attitude only serves to tarnish the reputation of our country abroad.

    Blog text (3)

  • I wouldn't want to tarnish your perfect reputation.

    Freelance (2023)

  • You don't have evidence enough to tarnish this boy's reputation.

    The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)

  • Remember, they will be representing your business, and if they use unprofessional tactics, it can tarnish your reputation.

    Blog text (21)

  • During this time, reports of the systematic human rights abuses have tarnished Iran's reputation in the international community.

    Academic text (2004)

  • The revelation has tarnished Fairey's reputation, particularly in view of the ruthlessness with which he has pursued violators of his own copyrighted images.

    Academic text (2009)

Synonyms

to taint
vsto tarnish reputation
126 7.3

To make something harmful or spoil its quality

means harming public regard rather than literal contamination
to diminish
vsto tarnish reputation
89 4.7

Make a person or thing seem less important

focuses on loss of respect rather than only reduced importance
to discredit
vsto tarnish reputation
66 6.3

To harm someone's reputation so others stop trusting them

is about general loss of respect rather than only trustworthiness
to disgrace
vsto tarnish reputation
62 4.5

To make someone lose respect or honor by doing something shameful

is less about shame and more about general reduced good opinion
to tarnish
vsto tarnish reputation
60 4.9

To make something like metal or a reputation lose its shine

is focused only on harm to respect and good opinion
to degrade
vsto tarnish reputation
55 5.1

To treat someone so they feel ashamed or less respected

is about public loss of good opinion rather than personal mistreatment
to brand
vsto tarnish reputation
53 4.1

To publicly label someone in a negative way

is general reputational harm, not only public negative labeling
to dishonor
vsto tarnish reputation
  • US
48 5.3

To make someone or something lose respect by bad action

is broader, covering loss of respect not only shame
to denigrate
vsto tarnish reputation
48 7.8

To say bad things about someone without a good reason to make them seem less important

is about reducing respect rather than only unfair criticism
to defile
vsto tarnish reputation
38 8.6

To make something dirty or harm its reputation

is focused on social respect harm rather than physical impurity
to defame
vsto tarnish reputation
  • Formal
18 6.8

To say false things about someone that harm their good name

covers reputation harm more generally, not only false statements
to besmirch
vsto tarnish reputation
  • Formal
14 8.8

Make a person or company look bad by saying bad things about them

describes harm to respect rather than literal staining
to sully
vsto tarnish reputation
13 7.6

Make someone's good name seem bad

is about lowering respect rather than literal dirtiness
to undermine credibility
vsto tarnish reputation
8 6.6

Make people trust someone or something less

is about lowering respect and good opinion more broadly than trust
to darken
vsto tarnish reputation
6 3.8

Make people think less of someone after a bad action

is about broad loss of respect rather than physical change
to maculate
vsto tarnish reputation
  • Formal
9.9

To make something dirty or spoil its reputation

focuses on harming respect rather than any physical marking

Antonyms

to bolster someone's reputation
1 4.2

Make people think better of someone

How Damaging

to ruin
∞ 2.0
to tarnish reputation
3 6.0
to harm
738 1.0
to diminish
89 4.7

Surface Forms

tarnish reputation infinitive
tarnished reputation past
tarnished reputation past participle
tarnishing reputation present participle
tarnishes reputation third person singular

Morphology

tarnish + reputation

The meaning is directly and compositionally derived from 'tarnish' (to spoil or reduce quality) + 'reputation' (people's beliefs about someone), so a learner who knows both words can infer 'to damage someone's good name.' This verb + noun collocation follows a straightforward semantic pattern found across languages and is therefore immediately comprehensible to B1 learners who know the constituents.

Etymology

Tarnish reputation comes from the image of a shiny medal or silver losing its shine. The verb tarnish means to make metal go dark, and a person's reputation is like that shine, so to tarnish reputation means to 'damage' how people think of someone.