besmear

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be·smear

(bĭ-smîr′)

tr.v. be·smeared, be·smear·ing, be·smears

To smear.

[Middle English bismeorwen, to make filthy, from Old English besmirwan, to besmear : be-, be- + smierwan, to smear.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

besmear

(bɪˈsmɪə)

vb (tr)

1. to smear over; daub

2. to sully; defile (often in the phrase besmear (a person's) reputation)

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

be•smear

(bɪˈsmɪər)

v.t.

to smear.

[before 1050]

be•smear′er, n.

besmear

Past participle: besmeared
Gerund: besmearing

Imperative
besmear
besmear

Present
I besmear
you besmear
he/she/it besmears
we besmear
you besmear
they besmear

Preterite
I besmeared
you besmeared
he/she/it besmeared
we besmeared
you besmeared
they besmeared

Present Continuous
I am besmearing
you are besmearing
he/she/it is besmearing
we are besmearing
you are besmearing
they are besmearing

Present Perfect
I have besmeared
you have besmeared
he/she/it has besmeared
we have besmeared
you have besmeared
they have besmeared

Past Continuous
I was besmearing
you were besmearing
he/she/it was besmearing
we were besmearing
you were besmearing
they were besmearing

Past Perfect
I had besmeared
you had besmeared
he/she/it had besmeared
we had besmeared
you had besmeared
they had besmeared

Future
I will besmear
you will besmear
he/she/it will besmear
we will besmear
you will besmear
they will besmear

Future Perfect
I will have besmeared
you will have besmeared
he/she/it will have besmeared
we will have besmeared
you will have besmeared
they will have besmeared

Future Continuous
I will be besmearing
you will be besmearing
he/she/it will be besmearing
we will be besmearing
you will be besmearing
they will be besmearing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been besmearing
you have been besmearing
he/she/it has been besmearing
we have been besmearing
you have been besmearing
they have been besmearing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been besmearing
you will have been besmearing
he/she/it will have been besmearing
we will have been besmearing
you will have been besmearing
they will have been besmearing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been besmearing
you had been besmearing
he/she/it had been besmearing
we had been besmearing
you had been besmearing
they had been besmearing

Conditional
I would besmear
you would besmear
he/she/it would besmear
we would besmear
you would besmear
they would besmear

Past Conditional
I would have besmeared
you would have besmeared
he/she/it would have besmeared
we would have besmeared
you would have besmeared
they would have besmeared

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Verb

besmear - spread or daub (a surface)

bedaub

cover - provide with a covering or cause to be covered; "cover her face with a handkerchief"; "cover the child with a blanket"; "cover the grave with flowers"

besmear

verb

1. To spread with a greasy, sticky, or dirty substance:

bedaub, dab, daub, plaster, smear, smirch, smudge.

2. To contaminate the reputation of:

befoul, besmirch, bespatter, blacken, cloud, denigrate, dirty, smear, smudge, smut, soil, spatter, stain, sully, taint, tarnish.

Idioms: give a black eye to, sling mud on.

Translations

besmear

[bɪˈsmiːəʳ] VT → embarrar, embadurnar

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

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References in classic literature ?

A man, so besmeared that he might have been a sorely wounded soldier creeping back to consciousness on a field of slain, was rising from the pavement by the side of the grindstone, and looking about him with a vacant air.

View in context

At length he encamped, caused the bodies of the wagons to be dislodged from the wheels, covered with buffalo hide, and besmeared with a compound of tallow and ashes; thus forming rude boats.

View in context

Thus arrayed, their hair besmeared with fish oil, and their bodies bedaubed with red clay, they considered themselves irresistible.

View in context

When all were ready, the king sent them to her; but she got up in the night when all were asleep, and took three of her trinkets, a golden ring, a golden necklace, and a golden brooch, and packed the three dresses--of the sun, the moon, and the stars--up in a nutshell, and wrapped herself up in the mantle made of all sorts of fur, and besmeared her face and hands with soot.