degrade
American Heritage Dictionary:
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de·grade
(dĭ-grād') 
v., -grad·ed, -grad·ing, -grades. v.tr.
v., -grad·ed, -grad·ing, -grades. v.tr.
- To reduce in grade, rank, or status; demote.
- To lower in dignity; dishonor or disgrace: a scandal that degraded the participants.
- To lower in moral or intellectual character; debase.
- To reduce in worth or value: degrade a currency.
- To impair in physical structure or function.
- Geology. To lower or wear by erosion or weathering.
- To cause (an organic compound) to undergo degradation.
- To fall below a normal state; deteriorate.
- To undergo degradation; decompose: a chemical that degrades rapidly.
[Middle English degraden, from Old French degrader, from Late Latin dēgradāre : Latin dē-, de- + Latin gradus, step.]
degrader de·grad'er n.SYNONYMS degrade, abase, debase, demean, humble, humiliate. These verbs mean to deprive of self-esteem or self-worth. Degrade implies reduction to a state of shame or disgrace: "If I pitied you for crying ... you should spurn such pity-=@ellipsis4=- Rise, and don't degrade yourself into an abject reptile!" (Emily Brontë). Abase refers principally to loss of rank or prestige: "Meg pardoned him, and Mrs. March's grave face relaxed . . . when she heard him declare that he would ... abase himself like a worm before the injured damsel" (Louisa May Alcott). Debase implies reduction in quality or value: "debasing the moral currency" (George Eliot). Demean suggests lowering in social position: "It puts him where he can make the advances without demeaning himself" (William Dean Howells). Humble can refer to lowering in rank or, more often, to reducing in pride: dreamed of humbling his opponent. To humiliate is to subject to loss of self-respect or dignity: a defeat that humiliated both army and nation. See also synonyms at demote.
Roget's Thesaurus:
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degrade
verb
- To lower in rank or grade: break, bump, demote, downgrade, reduce. Slang bust. See rise/fall.
- To deprive of esteem, self-worth, or effectiveness: abase, demean, humble, humiliate, mortify. Idioms: bring low, take down a peg. See respect/contempt/standing, win/lose/recovery.
- To lower in character or quality: cheapen, debase, demean, downgrade. See better/worse.
Antonyms by Answers.com:
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degrade
v
Definition: shame, humiliate
Antonyms: admire, approve, elevate, honor, promote, upgrade
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v. 1. reduce (someone) to a lower rank, especially as a punishment.
2. break down or deteriorate chemically: when exposed to light, the materials will degrade.
degradability n. degradable adj. degradative adj. degrader n.
See the Introduction, Abbreviations and Pronunciation for further details.
Random House Word Menu:
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categories related to 'degrade'
- Blame, Censure, Ridicule, and Contempt - degrade: (vb) bring into contempt or low esteem
See crossword solutions for the clue Translations:
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Degrade
Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - degradere, vanære, nedbryde, omdanne, forringe
Nederlands (Dutch)
verlagen, vernederen, onteren, verminderen, degenereren, degraderen
Français (French)
v. tr. - dégrader, (Mil) dégrader, s'abaisser à, s'avilir à
Deutsch (German)
v. - entehren, degradieren, (chem.) abbauen, (geol.) erodieren
Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - υποβαθμίζω, εξευτελίζω, εκφαυλίζω
Português (Portuguese)
v. - degradar(-se)
Русский (Russian)
унизить, понизить в должности
Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - deshonrar, degradar, reducir en calidad, erosionar
Svenska (Swedish)
v. - degradera, avsätta, förnedra, urarta
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
使降级, 降低...的品格, 降低...的地位, 使丢脸
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 使降級, 降低...的品格, 降低...的地位, 使丟臉
한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - 명예를 손상시키다, 지위를 강등하다, 붕괴시키다
日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 地位を下げる, 品位を落とす, 堕落させる, 下がる
العربيه (Arabic)
(فعل) يحط من قدر شئ أو شخص, ينزل رتبه شخص, يفسد جودة شئ, يحلل شئ ( مركبا الى عناصره الأساسيه)
עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ביזה, השפיל
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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