blight
n. C / Un. something that spoils or damages a place or situation, making it look or feel much worse. It is often used to describe ugly buildings in a city or a disease that kills plants.
n. a deleterious influence or condition that causes decay, stagnation, or ruin. Often refers metaphorically to urban decay or literally to botanical diseases that cause rapid tissue death.
The abandoned factory is a blight on the neighborhood.
Local residents complained that the graffiti and broken windows were a blight on the historic district.
The potato blight of the 1840s decimated crops across Ireland, leading to a catastrophic famine and permanent shifts in the country's demographic landscape.
Typically used in the singular when referring to a specific eyesore or social problem ('a blight on').