Definition of abase
abased
;abasing
transitive verb
1 formal : to lower in rank, office, prestige, or esteem abase oneself … the shame that had abased him within and without … — James Joyce
2 archaic : to lower physically As we enter among them the great elephant makes us a bow in the best style of elephantine courtesy, bending lowly down his mountain bulk, with trunk abased and leg thrust out behind. — Nathaniel Hawthorne
From the M-W Editors
Recent Examples of abase from the Web
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Consequently, the hero must be either venerated and elevated or cynically scorned and abased.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'abase.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of abase
alteration (conformed to 3base) of Middle English abessen, abaisen, abaschen, borrowed from Anglo-French abesser, abaisser, from a-, prefix in transitive verbs (going back to Latin ad-) + -besser, going back to Vulgar Latin *bassiāre “to lower,” derivative of Late Latin bassus “fat, short, low” — more at ad-, 3base
Learn More about abase
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See words that rhyme with abase Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for abase Spanish Central: Translation of abase Nglish: Translation of abase for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of abase for Arabic speakers
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