vitiation
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vi·ti·ate
(vĭsh′ē-āt′)tr.v. vi·ti·at·ed, vi·ti·at·ing, vi·ti·ates
1. To reduce the value or quality of; impair or spoil: "His famous compilation of norms was vitiated by a major sampling error" (Frederick Crews).
2. To corrupt morally; debase: "My anxieties ... still are great lest the numerous ... snares of vice should vitiate your early habits of virtue" (Abigail Adams). See Synonyms at corrupt.
3. To make ineffective (a contract or legal stipulation, for example); invalidate.
[Latin vitiāre, vitiāt-, from vitium, fault.]
vi′ti·a·ble (vĭsh′ē-ə-bəl) adj.
vi′ti·a′tion n.
vi′ti·a′tor n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Noun 1. vitiation - nullification by the destruction of the legal force; rendering null; "the vitiation of the contract"
nullification, override - the act of nullifying; making null and void; counteracting or overriding the effect or force of something
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
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