hu·mil·i·ate
hyü-ˈmi-lē-ˌāt 
yü-
humiliated; humiliating
: to reduce (someone) to a lower position in one's own eyes or others' eyes : to make (someone) ashamed or embarrassed : mortify
hoped they wouldn't humiliate themselves in their next game
accused her of humiliating him in public
feel so humiliated
hu·mil·i·a·tion
plural -s
1
a
: the act of humiliating
His incarnation was the humiliation of His godhead—
R. J. Wilberforce
R. J. Wilberforce
b
: the state of being humiliated
what submission, what cringing and fawning, what servility, what abject humiliation—Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens2
: an instance of humiliation
watched China undergo one humiliation after another—E. P. Snow
E. P. SnowExamples of humiliate in a Sentence
Verb
I hope I don't humiliate myself during the presentation.
He accused her of trying to humiliate him in public.
She was hurt and deeply humiliated by the lies he told about her.
Recent Examples on the Web
Thomas Wright, The Atlantic, 4 June 2026
In the ongoing fight for women’s equal rights, Pawol had proved a female baseball umpire can be second-guessed, proved wrong and humiliated by technology and mocked by howling fans on social media just like a man can.
—Miami Herald, 2 June 2026
Strength is not the capacity to humiliate someone with less power.
—Marc Brackett, Hartford Courant, 27 May 2026
These descriptions included being physically beaten, dragged by the hair, attacked with dogs, tased, and verbally humiliated.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for humiliate
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Verb
As long as Iran doesn’t humiliate Trump by restarting its nuclear program, the president can call it a win.
—Thomas Wright, The Atlantic, 4 June 2026
In the ongoing fight for women’s equal rights, Pawol had proved a female baseball umpire can be second-guessed, proved wrong and humiliated by technology and mocked by howling fans on social media just like a man can.
—Miami Herald, 2 June 2026
Strength is not the capacity to humiliate someone with less power.
—Marc Brackett, Hartford Courant, 27 May 2026
These descriptions included being physically beaten, dragged by the hair, attacked with dogs, tased, and verbally humiliated.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for humiliate
Cite this Entry
“Humiliate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/humiliate. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
humiliate
verb
hu·mil·i·ate
hyü-ˈmil-ē-ˌāt
yü-
humiliated; humiliating
: to cause a loss of pride or self-respect : humble
Etymology
Verb
from Latin humiliatus "made to lose pride or self-respect," from earlier humiliare "to make low or humble," from humilis "low, humble," from humus "earth"
Word Origin
In modern English we sometimes say that a person who has been criticized or humiliated has been put down. We speak as though the person had actually been forced to the ground or made to bow down in front of someone else. The origins of the word humiliate itself also suggest the idea of physically putting someone down to the ground. Humiliate can be be traced back to the Latin humus, meaning "earth, ground." From humus came the Latin adjective humilis, meaning "low, humble," which later gave rise to the verb humiliare, meaning "to make low or humble." The English humiliate derives from Latin humiliare.
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