D defs.my
Entry 2 senses Webster, 1913

Denigrate

/dĕn′ĭ-grāt/ · Den·i·grate · IPA /ˈdɛn.ɪ.ɡɹeɪ̯t/
01 v. t. To blacken thoroughly; to make very black.
  1. 1.
    To blacken thoroughly; to make very black.
  2. 2.
    Fig.: To blacken or sully; to defame.[R.]
    “To denigrate the memory of Voltaire.” — Morley.