1
as in to degrade
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
was unwilling to abase himself by pleading guilty to a crime that he did not commit
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to humiliate
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
I certainly don't abase myself when I do good, honest manual labor
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of abase
Turturro was attracted to the novel’s house style: Its manic, sarcastic, abasing observations, largely written in the third person but never far from Sabbath’s perspective, seemed made for the theater.
—
Marc Tracy, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2023
Pence has long since perfected the ability to abase himself in public without seeming the least bit ashamed.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2023
The question is whether the ways in which Pence abased himself in Trump’s efforts to hold on to power will make his testimony seem weaker or more credible.
—Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2023
The tension of the novel is between the femme’s self-abasing love for the brilliant masculine creator and the artist in search of her own form.
—Saidiya Hartman, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2023
He’s forced Republican politicians to publicly abase themselves and trash the nation’s premier law-enforcement agencies in an effort to stay in his good graces.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2022
Unfortunately, an impulse to abase oneself isn’t resolved by a recognition that human life is a collaboration.
—Caleb Crain, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2021
One by one, internees abase themselves before 60 of their fellow prisoners, repenting of their errors in thinking and their nonprogressive religious practices.
—James E. Person Jr., National Review, 17 Sep. 2020
By the end of the weekend, the entire NBA was in damage-control mode, profusely and absurdly abasing themselves.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 7 Oct. 2019
Marc Tracy, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2023
Pence has long since perfected the ability to abase himself in public without seeming the least bit ashamed.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2023
The question is whether the ways in which Pence abased himself in Trump’s efforts to hold on to power will make his testimony seem weaker or more credible.
—Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2023
The tension of the novel is between the femme’s self-abasing love for the brilliant masculine creator and the artist in search of her own form.
—Saidiya Hartman, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2023
He’s forced Republican politicians to publicly abase themselves and trash the nation’s premier law-enforcement agencies in an effort to stay in his good graces.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2022
Unfortunately, an impulse to abase oneself isn’t resolved by a recognition that human life is a collaboration.
—Caleb Crain, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2021
One by one, internees abase themselves before 60 of their fellow prisoners, repenting of their errors in thinking and their nonprogressive religious practices.
—James E. Person Jr., National Review, 17 Sep. 2020
By the end of the weekend, the entire NBA was in damage-control mode, profusely and absurdly abasing themselves.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 7 Oct. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abase
Verb
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Yields usually fall when fear is dominating markets, but their surprising earlier rise stirred fears that Trump’s trade war was degrading the U.S. bond market’s status as one of the world’s safest places to keep cash.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Apr. 2025
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Unlike many other archaeological sites in Sweden, where acidic soil degrades organic material, Strandvägen’s conditions have allowed organic material to survive for many years, as Gummesson tells the publication.—
Sonja Anderson,
Smithsonian Magazine,
24 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Shawn reluctantly agrees, but is humiliated when Cory starts acting corny around his friend Gambling Dan (Phil Buckman), and his lackey, Louie (Weiss).—
EW.com,
EW.com,
16 Apr. 2025
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He must be seen standing up to foreign oppressors who seek to humiliate China and thwart its rightful rise.—
Michael Schuman,
The Atlantic,
11 Apr. 2025
Verb
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This is what distinguishes bitcoin from every other modern financial asset – like gold, it cannot be debased by fiat or easily censored.—
Dave Birnbaum,
Forbes,
13 Jan. 2025
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His illuminating backstage account of cable news describes thoughtful journalists debasing themselves in their scramble to retain straying viewers.—
Daniel Immerwahr,
The New Yorker,
20 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Biden’s actions continue to discredit the legitimacy of our judicial system.—
Carl Burdette,
Baltimore Sun,
21 Apr. 2025
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The current page suggests this paper's explicit intention was to discredit the lab leak theory and remove any doubt that the origins were of natural origin.—
Youri Benadjaoud,
ABC News,
18 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The pests set about sucking the sap from grape roots, slowly weakening them and opening wounds that invited disease.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
28 Apr. 2025
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As more state legislation is passed that weakens or eliminates longstanding fire and life safety codes, the need for young workers who are trained and passionate about reversing these trends is high.—
Jim Pauley,
Forbes.com,
28 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Scores of sea lions and dolphins have been fatally poisoned in recent months by domoic acid, a neurotoxin produced by harmful algal blooms.—
Corinne Purtill,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2025
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Morgan was previously married to Keith Whitley from 1986 to his alcohol poisoning death in 1989 at age 34.—
Rachel DeSantis,
People.com,
17 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The woman, along with her legal team, painted a picture of a violent man whose abusive cycles included demeaning text messages, physical harm and threats.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
11 Apr. 2025
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In the future Firestone dared to imagine, families would be replaced by collectives, children would have autonomy, pregnancy would occur outside the body, and work would be fulfilling rather than demeaning.—
Audrey Wollen,
Harpers Magazine,
28 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Although Harvard is an institution that has been corrupted by politics and would be well served to voluntarily adopt most of Trump’s demands on it, the university has a good shot at prevailing in a legal fight on the grounds that Trump failed to follow the necessary statutory process.—
The Editors,
National Review,
29 Apr. 2025
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And the disease was a politics that was corrupted by the most powerful in our society: billionaires and oligarchs and corporate CEOs.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Abase.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abase. Accessed 3 May. 2025.
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