sujar

Senses

1. 1.

   to dirty, to soil, to stain

   to make something dirty or unclean

2. 2.

   to tarnish, to sully

   to damage someone's reputation or honor (figurative)

3. 3.

   to get dirty

   to become dirty (reflexive: sujar-se)

Examples

• "As crianças sujaram o chão com tinta."

  The children dirtied the floor with paint.

• "Não quero sujar minhas mãos com isso."

  I don't want to dirty my hands with that.

• "Ele se sujou todo brincando no quintal."

  He got himself all dirty playing in the backyard.

Usage

Common verb in everyday Brazilian Portuguese. Often used reflexively (sujar-se) to mean "to get dirty." The figurative sense of damaging one's reputation is common in expressions like "sujar o nome" (to tarnish one's name) or "sujar as mãos" (to get one's hands dirty, i.e., to do something morally questionable).