Hypertext Webster Gateway: "distain"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Distain \Dis*tain"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Distained}; p. pr. &
vb. n. {Distaining}.] [OE. desteinen, OF. desteindre to take
away the color, F. d['e]teindre; pref. des- (L. dis-) + F.
teindre to tinge, dye, L. tingere. See {Tinge}, and cf.
{Stain}.]
To tinge with a different color from the natural or proper
one; to stain; to discolor; to sully; to tarnish; to defile;
-- used chiefly in poetry. ``Distained with dirt and blood.''
--Spenser.
[She] hath . . . distained her honorable blood.
--Spenser.
The worthiness of praise distains his worth. --Shak.
Additional Hypertext Webster Gateway Lookup
Gateway by dict@stokkie.net
stock only wrote the gateway and does not have any control over the contents;
see the Webster Gateway FAQ,
and also the Back-end/database links and credits.