blight

[blahyt]

noun

1. Plant Pathology.

   1. the rapid and extensive discoloration, wilting, and death of plant tissues.

   2. a disease so characterized.

2. any cause of impairment, destruction, ruin, or frustration.

   Extravagance was the blight of the family.

   Synonyms: bane, scourge, plague, curse

3. the state or result of being blighted or deteriorated; dilapidation; decay.

   urban blight.

verb (used with object)

1. to cause to wither or decay; blast.

   Frost blighted the crops.

2. to destroy; ruin; frustrate.

   Illness blighted his hopes.

verb (used without object)

1. to suffer blight.

blight

/ blaɪt /

noun

1. any plant disease characterized by withering and shrivelling without rotting See also potato blight

2. any factor, such as bacterial attack or air pollution, that causes the symptoms of blight in plants

3. a person or thing that mars or prevents growth, improvement, or prosperity

4. an ugly urban district

5. the state or condition of being blighted or spoilt

verb

1. to cause or suffer a blight

2. (tr) to frustrate or disappoint

3. (tr) to spoil; destroy

blight

1. Any of numerous plant diseases that cause leaves, stems, fruits, and tissues to wither and die. Rust, mildew, and smut are blights.

2. The bacterium, fungus, or virus that causes such a disease.

Other Word Forms

• blightingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of blight¹

First recorded in 1605–15; of uncertain origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of blight¹

C17: perhaps related to Old English blǣce rash; compare _bleach

Example Sentences

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said the situation in Gaza was a "blight on humanity".

From BBC

The 76-year-old retired state employee, former gun store owner and avid elk hunter from La Grande, Oregon, is on a mission to keep turbines and transmission towers from blighting the rural landscape.

From Salon

Business owners in Surrey blighted by a massive sinkhole say they are fed up of people thinking their village is closed six months on.

From BBC

Residents living along the border had complained that their lives have been blighted by noise coming from both sides, sometimes in the middle of the night.

From BBC

Assassinations had already left an indelible blight on the decade.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• affliction 
• canker 
• decay 
• eyesore 
• fungus 
• infestation 
• mildew 
• pest 
• scourge