Definition

1. Noun:

   • A dirty mark or smear: A small area of dirt or another substance that has been spread on a surface, often by accident.
   • A blurred or indistinct spot or area: A mark that lacks a clear outline, making something appear unclear or smeared.
   • A smoky fire: A fire made to produce dense smoke, traditionally used to drive away insects or protect plants from frost.

2. Verb:

   • To make a dirty mark or smear on something: To spread a substance, making a surface dirty or blurred.
   • To become blurred or smeared: To lose clarity, often because something wet or dirty has been rubbed against it.
   • To damage or tarnish: To harm a reputation or the appearance of something (less common, formal usage).

Examples

• Noun:

  • There was a black smudge of grease on his shirt.
  • She tried to wipe the smudge off her glasses.
  • The gardeners lit a smudge to protect the fruit trees from the cold.

• Verb:

  • Be careful not to smudge the ink before it dries.
  • The child's drawing was smudged where he had rubbed his hand across it.
  • The scandal smudged the politician's previously clean record.

Advanced Usage

• "to smudge the lines between": To make the distinction between two things less clear or more ambiguous.
  • The artist's work smudges the lines between painting and sculpture.

Variants and Related Words

• Smudgy (adj): Covered with or characterized by smudges; blurred.

  • The photocopy was smudgy and hard to read.

• Smudginess (n): The quality or state of being smudgy.

Synonyms

• Noun: Blot, smear, stain, blur, spot.
• Verb: Blur, smear, stain, daub, sully.

Related Phrasal Verbs

(This word is not commonly used in phrasal verb constructions.)

Related Idioms

• "A smudge on one's record/character": A minor fault or blemish that damages a reputation.
  • The arrest was a smudge on his otherwise spotless record.

Noun

1. a blemish made by dirt
   • he had a smudge on his cheek
2. a smoky fire to drive away insects

Verb

1. make a smudge on; soil by smudging