ABASE Synonyms: 160 Similar and Opposite Words

abase

verb

ə-ˈbās

Definition of abase

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

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of abase 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 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

Recent Examples of Synonyms for abase

Verb

There’s no danger of spontaneous mass illiteracy, but the complex cognitive skills that reading fosters start to degrade.

— Rose Horowitch, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026
Weather changes, tires degrade, a safety car appears, a driver reports instability or an opponent pits earlier than expected, and the team has seconds to decide whether to stay with the plan or change it.

— Erum Manzoor, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026

Definition of degrade

Verb

One has to be willing to humiliate oneself in order to yodel, there is no spiritual bypass.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
The party has found a kind of rhythm, where the president breaks fundraising records, spreads the wealth around, and, in return, gets to humiliate disloyal Republicans in seats that the party can’t lose.

— David Weigel, semafor.com, 1 July 2026

Definition of humiliate

Verb

In spite of their original values of humanitarianism and neutrality, these organizations have been morally debased from within, using the language of human rights and international justice yet deploying it on behalf of autocracies and against the liberal democracies that created them.

— Simon Sebag Montefiore, The Atlantic, 28 June 2026
In order to emerge victorious in his quest to bring the World Cup to Mexico, De la Torre debases himself and backstabs shamelessly.

— Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2026

Definition of debase

Verb

Kiryl Pazniak, 49, who hosted a popular political show on YouTube, has been convicted on the charges of discrediting Belarus and forming an extremist organization, the group said — accusations widely used by authorities to stifle critical voices.

— ABC News, ABC News, 2 July 2026
Green said earlier this year that Adebayo shouldn’t be underestimated and his 83-point game against Washington shouldn’t be discredited.

— Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026

Definition of discredit

Verb

The flow of dark traffic is one of the factors that helped explain why oil markets had weakened significantly by early June, together with a surge in exports from the US and pullback in buying by China.

— Weilun Soon, Fortune, 5 July 2026
But as several surveys have consistently indicated, optimism about our country's outlook has undeniably weakened.

— Robert Hormats, Time, 4 July 2026

Definition of weaken

Verb

Many of her victims were poisoned and buried around the boarding house, with Puente cashing their social security checks.

— Selome Hailu, Variety, 7 July 2026
Chism’s defense asked that the court not release the affidavit, citing there was no legitimate purpose to release at this time and that doing so could poison any future jury pool.

— Sofi Zeman, Kansas City Star, 6 July 2026

Definition of poison

Verb

Cavalli was not using this as a racial slur, but plenty of black athletes have used it to demean white people without the league getting involved, without suspensions, and zero fines for their offenses.

— Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026
Dean also wrote that she was also subjected to demeaning comments from the late radio host Don Imus during her tenure as a news editor and reporter for his program in the early 2000s.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026

Definition of demean

Verb

Exploits will trigger guest-side actions alone to corrupt the host kernel’s shadow page, a data structure in the host that assists in the address translation.

— Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 8 July 2026
If religion is corrupted by breaking down the wall of separation, much the same is true of the state.

— Kenneth Seeskin, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026

Definition of corrupt

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“Abase.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abase. Accessed 11 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of abase

verb

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