Defile vs Debase - What's the difference?
defile | debase | Synonyms |
to make impure; to make dirty.
A narrow way or passage, e.g. between mountains.
A single file, such as of soldiers.
The act of defilading a fortress, or of raising the exterior works in order to protect the interior.
(archaic) To march in a single file.
* 1979 , Cormac McCarthy, Suttree , Random House, p.138:
march-past
To lower in character, quality, or value; to degrade.
(archaic) To lower in position or rank.Oxford English Dictionary , 2nd ed., 1989.
To lower the value of (a currency) by reducing the amount of valuable metal in the coins.
In transitive terms the difference between defile and debase
is that defile is to make impure; to make dirty while debase is to lower the value of (a currency) by reducing the amount of valuable metal in the coins.As a noun defile
is a narrow way or passage, e.g. between mountains.defile
English
Etymology 1
From (etyl) .Verb
(defil)Synonyms
* contaminate * polluteAntonyms
* purifyEtymology 2
Earlier (defilee), from (etyl) .Noun
(en noun)See also
* glenVerb
(defil)- They defiled down a gully to the water and bunched and jerked their noses at it and came back.
