DEFILE


Meaning of DEFILE in English

~ 1 [ dɪ'fʌɪl ]

■ verb sully, mar, or spoil.

↘desecrate or profane (something sacred).

↘ archaic rape or sexually assault (a woman).

Derivatives

~ment noun

~r noun

Origin

ME: alt. of obs. defoul , from OFr. defouler 'trample down', influenced by obs. befile 'befoul, ~'.

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~ 2 [ dɪ'fʌɪl ]

■ noun also 'di:fʌɪl a steep-sided narrow gorge or passage (originally one requiring troops to march in single file).

■ verb archaic (of troops) march in single file.

Origin

C17: from Fr. défilé (n.), défiler (v.), from dé 'away from' + file 'column, file'.

Concise Oxford English vocab.      Сжатый оксфордский словарь английского языка.