deprave

1 of 2

verb

de·​prave di-ˈprāv 

depraved; depraving

transitive verb

1

archaic : to speak ill of : malign

2

: to make bad : corrupt

especially : to corrupt morally

depravation

ˌde-prə-ˈvā-shən 

ˌdē-ˌprā-

noun

depravement

di-ˈprāv-mənt 

noun

depraver

di-ˈprā-vər 

noun

depravation

2 of 2

noun

dep·​ra·​va·​tion ˌdeprəˈvāshən 

plural -s

1

obsolete : defamation, calumny

2

: the act or process of depraving or the state of being depraved : corruption, perversion, degeneracy, depravity

also : an instance of this

Synonyms of deprave

Verb

• corrupt
• degrade
• weaken
• debauch
• pervert
• subvert
• humiliate
• poison
• deteriorate
• debase
• destroy

Choose the Right Synonym for deprave

debase, vitiate, deprave, corrupt, debauch, pervert mean to cause deterioration or lowering in quality or character.

debase implies a loss of position, worth, value, or dignity.

commercialism has debased the holiday

vitiate implies a destruction of purity, validity, or effectiveness by allowing entrance of a fault or defect.

a foreign policy vitiated by partisanship

deprave implies moral deterioration by evil thoughts or influences.

the claim that society is depraved by pornography

corrupt implies loss of soundness, purity, or integrity.

the belief that bureaucratese corrupts the language

debauch implies a debasing through sensual indulgence.

the long stay on a tropical isle had debauched the ship's crew

pervert implies a twisting or distorting from what is natural or normal.

perverted the original goals of the institute

Examples of deprave in a Sentence

Verb

the belief that pornography depraves society as a whole

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Online court records show he is charged with first-degree murder dangerous depraved without premeditation. —Kc Baker, PEOPLE, 2 Apr. 2026

Murdering a teenaged iconic athlete shows how deeply depraved the Iranian leadership is. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 19 Mar. 2026

Trump's No Kings video was truly depraved. —Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 20 Oct. 2025

DiCaprio has played disturbed and depraved individuals in Scorsese’s films before, but Killers of the Flower Moon is something different. —Tim Grierson, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2025

The company goes on to say the infringing product depraves Levi’s its rights to use and control its trademark and maintain its reputation with consumers, licensees and collaborators and allows others to believe the distinctive features of the Tab trademark may be misappropriated for their use. —Angela Velasquez, Sourcing Journal, 3 Jan. 2025

They are depraved on account of being deprived. —Matthew Continetti, National Review, 14 Dec. 2024

All writings, unpalatable for one section of the society, cannot be labeled as obscene, vulgar, depraving, prurient and immoral. . . . —Amitava Kumar, The New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2019

This is especially true when the news operation is clearly on the side of righteousness against a policy as depraved this. —David Zurawik, baltimoresun.com, 15 June 2018

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French depraver, from Latin depravare to pervert, from de- + pravus crooked, bad

Noun

Middle French, from Latin depravation-, depravatio perversion, from depravatus + -ion-, -io -ion

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for deprave

• agave
• behave
• concave
• conclave
• enclave
• engrave
• enslave
• forgave
• landgrave
• margrave
• shortwave
• aftershave

Kids Definition

deprave

verb

de·​prave di-ˈprāv 

depraved; depraving

: to make evil : pervert

depravedly

-ˈprā-vəd-lē, 

-ˈprāvd-lē

adverb

depravedness

-ˈprā-vəd-nəs, 

-ˈprāvd-nəs

noun