The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Sully \Sul"ly\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Sullied; p. pr. & vb. n.
   Sullying.] [OE. sulien, AS. sylian, fr. sol mire; akin to
   G. suhle mire, sich, s["u]hlen to wallow, Sw. s["o]la to
   bemire, Dan. s["o]le, Goth. bisaulijan to defile.]
   To soil; to dirty; to spot; to tarnish; to stain; to darken;
   -- used literally and figuratively; as, to sully a sword; to
   sully a person's reputation.
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         Statues sullied yet with sacrilegious smoke.
                                                  --Roscommon.
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         No spots to sully the brightness of this solemnity.
                                                  --Atterbury.
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