as in degraded
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
bastardize the art form by adapting it to popular taste
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Recent Examples of bastardized
Short’s personality and complexity, attributes long discarded as her life became bastardized, stand in stark contrast to the inhumanity of her death.
—
Nathan Smith, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
The events meant to bring us together, like the Super Bowl or March Madness, have been bastardized into vehicles for ruinous addiction.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
Nathan Smith, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2026
The events meant to bring us together, like the Super Bowl or March Madness, have been bastardized into vehicles for ruinous addiction.
—MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bastardized
Verb
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Karácsony is one of those decent, upstanding politicians which degraded systems sometimes throw up unexpectedly.—
Kapil Komireddi,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2026
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In an era of profound loneliness, when our social skills are being degraded by AI and even our romantic partners are being replaced by those same LLMs, these would-be protein heads had managed to have a good time in real life.—
Sam Stone,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Goodwill is corrupted on arrival by the modern virtue of avarice.—
Andy Andersen,
Vulture,
23 Mar. 2026
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Helberg, cast as inventor Martin Phister, opens up about their characters who are trying to be virtuous and end up getting corrupted instead.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Constitution has been perverted in ways by administrations on both sides of the aisle to facilitate military action.—
Rebecca Noel,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Organized sports can easily be perverted.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The series offered a look at Mormon moms in Utah that subverted viewers’ expectations.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Apr. 2026
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Republicans and Democrats, left and right—both are being subverted by anti-Semitism within.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday proposed weakened rules governing the safe disposal of ash produced by burning coal.—
Michael Phillis,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
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But these strengths are being weakened by leadership that has failed to prioritize affordability and competitiveness.—
Randy Altschuler,
Baltimore Sun,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Some say that the quantity of productions required by streaming services has diluted the talent pool of crews.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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When this idea is diluted, government expands its ambition to curate the public’s consciousness.—
George F. Will,
Washington Post,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Could Ty Jones, whose autopsy said the 33-year-old died of heart issues, have been poisoned too?—
Peter Van Sant,
CBS News,
5 Apr. 2026
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But Antonelli also questioned reports the two had been deliberately poisoned.—
Barbie Latza Nadeau,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The lawsuit says the hospital did not tell his family that Hylton’s condition had deteriorated and that he had been transferred to the ICU without a doctor on-site.—
Jen Christensen,
CNN Money,
9 Apr. 2026
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All the while, his injuries mounted and personal life deteriorated.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bastardized.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bastardized. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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