deprived; depriving
1
: to take something away from
… deprived him of his professorship …—
J. M. Phalen
J. M. Phalenthe risk of injury when the brain is deprived of oxygen
2
: to withhold something from
deprived a citizen of their rights
3
: to remove from office
… the Archbishop … would be deprived and sent to the Tower …—Edith Sitwell
Edith Sitwell4
obsolete
: remove
'Tis honor to deprive dishonored life …—Shakespeare
ShakespeareExamples of deprive in a Sentence
working those long hours was depriving him of his sleep
a prince who had been deprived after those who opposed the monarchy came to power
Recent Examples on the Web
Using marijuana every other day isn’t a sufficient reason for the government to deprive Americans of their constitutional right to bear arms.
—
Noah Feldman,
Twin Cities,
25 June 2026
Plus, participants from the UK Biobank tend to be healthier and less socioeconomically deprived than the general population, which may limit how well the findings apply to everyone.
—
Emily Kay Votruba,
EverydayHealth.com,
25 June 2026
Extreme heat is already a headache for many data centers, raising the chances electricity will go away, depriving customers of their sweet, sweet AI.
—
Mark Gongloff,
Mercury News,
24 June 2026
That failure deprived the prosecutors, the jury, and ultimately the public of information that may have helped provide a more complete picture of what occurred.
—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deprive
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noah Feldman,
Twin Cities,
25 June 2026
Plus, participants from the UK Biobank tend to be healthier and less socioeconomically deprived than the general population, which may limit how well the findings apply to everyone.
—
Emily Kay Votruba,
EverydayHealth.com,
25 June 2026
Extreme heat is already a headache for many data centers, raising the chances electricity will go away, depriving customers of their sweet, sweet AI.
—
Mark Gongloff,
Mercury News,
24 June 2026
That failure deprived the prosecutors, the jury, and ultimately the public of information that may have helped provide a more complete picture of what occurred.
—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
23 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deprive
Cite this Entry
“Deprive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deprive. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deprive
verb
de·prive
di-ˈprīv 
deprived; depriving
1
: to take something away from
deprive a ruler of power
2
: to stop from having something
deprived of sleep by street noises
deprivation
noun
ˌdep-rə-ˈvā-shən
Medical Definition
deprive
transitive verb
de·prive
di-ˈprīv
deprived; depriving
: to take something away from and especially something that is usually considered essential for mental or physical well-being
a child deprived of emotional support
tissue deprived of oxygen
Legal Definition
deprive
transitive verb
de·prive
deprived; depriving
: to take away or withhold something from
no person shall…be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law—U.S. Constitution amend. V
U.S. Constitution amend. VLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
