Black's Law Dictionary (2nd edition)dictionaries

Deface

To mar or destroy the face (that is, the physical appearance of written or Inscribed characters os expressive of a definite meaning) of a written instrument, signature, inscription, etc., by obliteration, erasure, cancellation, or superinscription, so as to render it illegible or unrecognizable. Linney v. State, 6 Tex. 1, 55 Am. Dec. 756. See Cancel

Source: Black’s Law Dictionary 2nd Ed (1910)