blight
C1Formal, literary, journalistic
Definition
Meaning
A plant disease that withers and kills parts, or any destructive, corrupting force.
Any cause of severe, widespread, or chronic damage, ruin, or deterioration, whether physical (e.g., urban decay), social, or metaphorical.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Often implies a pervasive, insidious, and difficult-to-control destructive force. Can be applied to plants, places, societies, and hopes.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
No significant syntactic differences. The botanical term is equally used. In urban/social contexts, both use it.
Connotations
In UK contexts, 'urban blight' is a very common collocation for urban decay. In US, 'rust belt blight' is common.
Frequency
Slightly higher frequency in UK English, especially in journalistic/political discourse describing urban problems.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
N blight on N (a blight on the neighbourhood)V blight N (disease blighted the crops)N blight V (poverty blights lives)Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “a blight on the landscape (something ugly that spoils a view)”
- “cast a blight on (to spoil something)”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare. Might be used metaphorically: 'Regulatory uncertainty is a blight on investment.'
Academic
Used in botany, urban studies, sociology, and history (e.g., 'the blight of industrial decline').
Everyday
Uncommon in casual chat. Used when discussing serious social/urban issues or garden problems.
Technical
Specific in plant pathology (e.g., 'late blight' caused by Phytophthora infestans).
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The new housing estate blighted the view of the valley.
- His career was blighted by persistent injury.
American English
- Subprime mortgages blighted entire neighbourhoods.
- Frost blighted the early peach blossoms.
adverb
British English
- Not typically used as an adverb.
American English
- Not typically used as an adverb.
adjective
British English
- The blighted oak trees were cut down.
- Efforts to regenerate the blighted inner-city areas continued.
American English
- They toured the blighted factories of the rust belt.
- The blighted cornfield was a total loss.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The potato blight destroyed the farmer's crop.
- Pollution is a blight on our city.
- Urban blight has led to the abandonment of many city centre buildings.
- The scandal cast a blight on his political ambitions.
- The pervasive blight of corruption undermines the very foundations of the state.
- Architects argued the proposed tower would be a perpetual blight on the historic skyline.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a LIGHT that's BLocked – a blight blocks growth and light, leaving darkness and decay.
Conceptual Metaphor
DESTRUCTION IS A DISEASE / CORRUPTION IS A DISEASE (A blight spreads and kills like a sickness).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid direct translation to 'болезнь' (disease) for non-botanical contexts. For urban blight, use 'запустение', 'упадок'. For 'blight hopes', use 'разрушать надежды'.
Common Mistakes
- Confusing 'blight' with 'blight' as a verb form of 'blind' (not correct). Using it for minor inconveniences (it implies serious damage).
Practice
Quiz
In which context is 'blight' used most specifically?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
No, its core meaning is botanical, but it is very commonly used metaphorically for any destructive force (e.g., urban blight, social blight).
Both can be metaphors for afflictions. 'Plague' often suggests a sudden, widespread calamity (like a pandemic). 'Blight' suggests a slower, more pervasive rotting or decay, especially of something that should thrive.
Yes. As a verb, it means to have a severely damaging or spoiling effect on something (e.g., 'Frost blighted the flowers', 'War blighted his childhood').
It is neutral to formal. It is common in writing (news, academia) and serious discussion. It is less common in everyday casual conversation.
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