blight
blight definition
blight (blīt)
noun
- any atmospheric or soil condition, parasite, or insect that kills, withers, or checks the growth of plants
- any of several plant diseases, as rust, mildew, or smut
- anything that destroys, prevents growth, or causes devaluation slums are a blight on a city
- a person or thing that withers someone's hopes or ambitions
- the condition or result of being blighted
Etymology: ? akin to ME blichening, blight, rust (on grain) < bliknen, to lose color < ON blikja, turn pale: see bleach
transitive verb
- to cause a blight in or on; wither
- to destroy
- to disappoint or frustrate
intransitive verb
to suffer blight
Related Forms:
- blighted blight′ed adjective
Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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