Blighting

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Causing damage or harm to the health, growth, or prosperity of something ; causing a loss of beauty or physical decay in an object or environment
2. Bringing about deterioration or decline that affects vitality or success ; producing an effect that makes something look unpleasant or run down
3. Inflicting harm that stunts development or spoils conditions ; causing visible damage that reduces attractiveness or causes ruin

Etymology: Gardeners and farmers first gave this word its sense: a plant disease that left crops and leaves withered, discoloured or dying, often with no obvious cause. The noun came first, and the verb grew out of it, so to blight a crop was to strike it with that sudden sickness. Over time the same idea moved from fields to people, so that a hope, a reputation or a town's prospects could be blighted, meaning cut short or spoiled. The noun's ultimate source is uncertain. Standard references record no clearly traceable older English ancestor, so its earliest roots remain unknown. What is clear is the core image, which has held steady: something that looks healthy goes wrong from within, and the damage shows on the surface.

Synonyms: damaging, destroying, ruining, wasting, devastating

Antonyms: restoring, reviving, healing, nurturing, improving