demoted; demoting
1
: to reduce to a lower grade or rank
demote a student
was demoted from major to captain
2
: to relegate to a less important position
a pitcher demoted to the bullpen
Examples of demote in a Sentence
Teachers can choose to demote a student to a lower grade.
The army major was demoted to captain.
Recent Examples on the Web
Hegseth this week backed off that losing proposition and instead issued a censure for Kelly and started a process to demote him in retirement, which would reduce his pension.
—
Chris Brennan, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
The senator and Navy veteran isn’t likely to be cowed by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s lawless attempt to silence him by seeking to demote him post-retirement.
—Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
As an indication of how badly things went, consider that during the season the Dolphins fired their general manager (Chris Grier) and demoted their quarterback (Tua Tagovailoa).
—Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
The Kelly story concerned the Arizona senator possibly being demoted from his retired Navy rank of captain.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for demote
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Chris Brennan, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
The senator and Navy veteran isn’t likely to be cowed by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s lawless attempt to silence him by seeking to demote him post-retirement.
—Adam Serwer, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
As an indication of how badly things went, consider that during the season the Dolphins fired their general manager (Chris Grier) and demoted their quarterback (Tua Tagovailoa).
—Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 7 Jan. 2026
The Kelly story concerned the Arizona senator possibly being demoted from his retired Navy rank of captain.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 6 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for demote
Cite this Entry
“Demote.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/demote. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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