self-deprecating

adjective

self-dep·​re·​cat·​ing ˌself-ˈde-pri-ˌkā-tiŋ 

: tending or serving to disparage or undervalue oneself

self-deprecating humor

He is far too self-deprecating … to assume the persona of a celebrity.

—Eve MacSweeney

self-deprecatingly adverb

… his own informal cluster of American dissident scholars, which self-deprecatingly calls itself the "consolation club" …

—Franklin Foer

Examples of self-deprecating in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Like the show's moniker implies, Bravo fans can expect plenty of hilarious, self-deprecating references to Bateman's time on RHOSLC. —Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 14 Oct. 2025

The film is considered one of the great romantic comedies of all time, with Keaton’s eccentric, self-deprecating Annie at its heart. —Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 11 Oct. 2025

The content is heavy but told with a light hand and a bit of self-deprecating humor. —Kristen Tauer, Footwear News, 11 Oct. 2025

Some of Swift's best work comes from her self-deprecating moods, and this track, with its self-loathing but super catchy lyrics, is no exception. —Lauren Huff, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1834, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for self-deprecating

• accelerating
• accentuating
• accommodating
• accumulating
• adjudicating
• administrating
• affiliating
• agglutinating
• alienating
• alleviating
• amalgamating
• ameliorating