vb. To discolor by the application of foreign matter; to make foul; to spot; as, to stain the hand with dye; armor stained with blood. To color, as wood, glass, paper, cloth, or the like, by processes affecting, chemically or otherwise, the material itself; to tinge with a color or colors combining with, or penetrating, the substance; to dye; as, to stain wood with acids, colored washes, paint rubbed in, etc.; to stain glass. To spot with guilt or infamy; to bring reproach on; to blot; to soil; to tarnish. To cause to seem inferior or soiled by comparison. Stained glass, glass colored or stained by certain metallic pigments fused into its substance, - often used for making ornament windows.
Syn. - To paint; dye; blot; soil; sully; discolor; disgrace; taint. - Paint, Stain, Dye. These denote three different processes; the first mechanical, the other two, chiefly chemical. To paint a thing is so spread a coat of coloring matter over it; to stain or dye a thing is to impart color to its substance. To stain is said chiefly of solids, as wood, glass, paper; to dye, of fibrous substances, textile fabrics, etc.; the one, ...