Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A spot or a stain caused by a discoloring substance.
  • noun An association of disgrace with one's character or reputation. synonym: stain.
  • noun The Northern, Southern, or Western blot analyses.
  • intransitive verb To soak up or dry with absorbent material. Often used with up.
  • intransitive verb To make obscure or invisible; hide. Often used with out.
  • intransitive verb To render invisible or unreadable by marking; obliterate. Often used with out.
  • intransitive verb To remove or block from personal memory or public remembrance. Often used with out.
  • intransitive verb To spot or stain, as with a discoloring substance.
  • intransitive verb To bring moral disgrace to.
  • intransitive verb To spill or spread in a spot or stain.
  • intransitive verb To become blotted, soaked up, or absorbed.
  • noun Games An exposed piece in backgammon.
  • noun Archaic A weak point.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In backgammon: A single exposed piece which is liable to be forfeited or taken up.
  • noun The exposure of a piece in this way.
  • To spot, stain, or bespatter, as with ink, mud, or any discoloring matter.
  • Figuratively, to stain as with disgrace or infamy; tarnish; disgrace; disfigure.
  • To obliterate so as to render invisible or not distinguishable, as writing or letters with ink: generally with out: as, to blot out a word or a sentence.
  • Hence To efface; cause to be unseen or forgotten; destroy; annihilate: followed by out: as, to blot out a crime, or the remembrance of anything.
  • To darken or obscure; eclipse.
  • To dry by means of blotting-paper or the like.
  • To obliterate something written.
  • To become blotted or stained: as, this paper blots easily.
  • noun A spot or stain, as of ink on paper; a blur; a disfiguring stain or mark: as, “one universal blot,”
  • noun A scoring out; an erasure or obliteration, as in a writing.
  • noun A spot upon character or reputation; a moral stain; a disgrace; a reproach; a blemish.
  • noun Imputed disgrace or stain; defamation: as, to cast a blot upon one's character.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To spot, stain, or bespatter, as with ink.
  • transitive verb To impair; to damage; to mar; to soil.
  • transitive verb To stain with infamy; to disgrace.
  • transitive verb To obliterate, as writing with ink; to cancel; to efface; -- generally with out. Often figuratively.
  • transitive verb To obscure; to eclipse; to shadow.
  • transitive verb To dry, as writing, with blotting paper.
  • noun A spot or stain, as of ink on paper; a blur.
  • noun An obliteration of something written or printed; an erasure.
  • noun A spot on reputation; a stain; a disgrace; a reproach; a blemish.
  • noun An exposure of a single man to be taken up.
  • noun A single man left on a point, exposed to be taken up.
  • noun A weak point; a failing; an exposed point or mark.
  • intransitive verb To take a blot.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A blemish, spot or stain made by a coloured substance.
  • noun by extension A stain on someone's reputation or character; a disgrace.
  • noun biochemistry The Southern blot analysis (and derived Northern and Western) analytical techniques.
  • noun backgammon an exposed piece in backgammon.
  • verb transitive to cause a blot (on something) by spilling a coloured substance.
  • verb intransitive to soak up, or absorb liquid.
  • verb to hide, obscure or obliterate something.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb dry (ink) with blotting paper

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English.]

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Possibly from Low German blat, naked, unprotected.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Originally "blemish," perhaps from Old Norse blettr, or from Old French bloche ("clod of earth")

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