The difference between Defile and Pollute

When used as verbs, defile means to make unclean, dirty, or impure, whereas pollute means to make something harmful, especially by the addition of some unwanted product.


Defile is also noun with the meaning: a narrow way or passage, e.g. between mountains.

Pollute is also adjective with the meaning: polluted.

check bellow for the other definitions of Defile and Pollute

  1. Defile as a verb (transitive):

    To make unclean, dirty, or impure; soil; befoul.

  2. Defile as a verb (transitive):

    To vandalize or add inappropriate contents to something considered sacred or special; desecrate

    Examples:

    "To urinate on someone's grave is an example of a way to defile it."

  3. Defile as a verb (transitive):

    To deprive or ruin someone's (sexual) purity or chastity, often not consensually; stain; tarnish; mar; rape

    Examples:

    "The serial rapist kidnapped and defiled a six-year-old girl."

  1. Defile as a noun:

    A narrow way or passage, e.g. between mountains

  2. Defile as a noun:

    A single file, such as of soldiers.

  3. Defile as a noun:

    The act of defilading a fortress, or of raising the exterior works in order to protect the interior.

  1. Defile as a verb (archaic, intransitive):

    To march in a single file.

  1. Pollute as a verb (transitive):

    To make something harmful, especially by the addition of some unwanted product.

    Examples:

    "The factory polluted the river when it cleaned its tanks."

  2. Pollute as a verb (transitive):

    To make something or somewhere less suitable for some activity, especially by the introduction of some unnatural factor.

    Examples:

    "The lights from the stadium polluted the night sky, and we couldn't see the stars."

  3. Pollute as a verb (dated):

    To corrupt or profane

  4. Pollute as a verb:

    To violate sexually; to debauch; to dishonour.

  1. Pollute as an adjective (rare):

    Polluted; defiled.