degrading

adjective

de·​grad·​ing di-ˈgrā-diŋ 

dē-

: causing or associated with a low, destitute, or demoralized state : causing someone to be or feel degraded

a degrading experience

… a work about a young man full of bottled rage looking for a degrading job …

—Penelope Gilliatt

… any cruel, inhumane, or degrading treatment of detainees was absolutely forbidden …

—David Cole

degradingly

di-ˈgrā-diŋ-lē 

dē-

adverb

"I hate to be poor, and we are degradingly poor, offensively poor, miserably poor, beastly poor."

—Charles Dickens

When employees are treated degradingly by their manager, they respond with decreased motivation, commitment, loyalty, and productivity.

—Ken Lloyd

Synonyms of degrading

• insulting
• slighting
• demeaning
• malicious
• derogatory
• abusive
• disparaging
• critical

Examples of degrading in a Sentence

made degrading comments about his so-called friend behind his back

Recent Examples on the Web

Nowak's father called his son's treatment by police inhumane and degrading. —Holly Williams, CBS News, 3 June 2026

The way he was treated was inhumane and degrading. —Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 3 June 2026

In principle, there is no such thing as intrinsically degrading work; degradation is a cultural phenomenon. —Wyatt Williams, Harpers Magazine, 2 June 2026

There’s an adjustment period — percale can feel crisp at first — but most people acclimate within a week or two and find cotton softens further with every wash, rather than pilling or degrading like synthetics. —Allison Palmer, Charlotte Observer, 21 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1540, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for degrading

• abrading
• blockading
• cascading
• crusading
• dissuading
• downgrading
• evading
• invading
• parading
• persuading
• pervading
• regrading