as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
there's no need for belittling comments about your brother's trumpet playing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dismissing
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
belittled the action star's acting ability
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of belittling
Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Prior to her tragic death, Toussaint had reclaimed her power, announcing her intent to divorce her belittling husband and address her people with honesty.
—Nicole Briese, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for belittling
Adjective
Yet, since sometime before July 23, 2022, an anonymous user has been steadily updating IMDb’s trivia section on Corsage with hostile and belittling comments presented under the guise of background information.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
Verb
No doubt many of them are relying on prayer for comfort and understanding and don’t need their city’s mayor belittling how the faithful talk to God — even if his words amounted to a talking point frequently used by the supporters of gun controls.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2025
Prior to her tragic death, Toussaint had reclaimed her power, announcing her intent to divorce her belittling husband and address her people with honesty.
—Nicole Briese, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for belittling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for belittling
Verb
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As a result of the investigation, embassy officials decided not to renew the employee’s contract, effectively dismissing him.—
T. Christian Miller,
ProPublica,
30 Sep. 2025
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The appellate court last year reversed Martínez-Olguín’s initial case dismissal, leading to the judge dismissing it again.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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To educate all of them in similar ways is insulting, and silly.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
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Perkins said the drink bore the insulting message.—
Victoria Moorwood,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Keeping your hands free while solo and on the move enhances alertness by minimizing distractions and improves reaction time for unexpected situations.—
Kristy Alpert,
Travel + Leisure,
28 Sep. 2025
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Once stationary, deactivate all lights except the hazard flashers, engage the emergency brake, and release the brake pedal to ensure your tail lights remain unlit, minimizing the chance of other drivers colliding with your stationary vehicle.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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For decades, Indigenous leaders and advocates across the state and country have been trying to convince school communities that the use of such mascots and logos are inappropriate, demeaning and harmful.—
Frank Vaisvilas,
jsonline.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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One detainee who submitted an account to the court that was referenced by Gregorio described sleeping in foul-smelling facilities and facing demeaning treatment by ICE agents.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
12 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Football, it could be argued, is diminishing its worth by almost never taking a break and playing virtually year-round.—
Chris Weatherspoon,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
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Advertisement Risks of multivitamins Many of us grew up striving for 100% on every test, but overachieving with multivitamins comes with risk—diminishing their benefits or causing harmful side effects.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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And there would be lots of soldiers around, either Army or National Guard, and the people who were civilians would be young people, very disparaging about the military.—
Steve Baltin,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
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The 2023 Economic Report Of The President published in March of 2023 was relatively disparaging of cryptoassets and DLTs.—
Lawrence Wintermeyer,
Forbes,
5 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Her coach Cheryl Reeve was later suspended after postgame comments criticizing the officiating in that game.—
Kevin Dotson,
CNN Money,
4 Oct. 2025
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Trump has also spoken at length about his concerns about the New York City mayoral race, criticizing the potential election of progressive candidate Zohran Mamdani, who drew national attention for beating former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary.—
Peter Aitken,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Charles Rolsky, executive director and senior research scientist at the Shaw Institute, a nonprofit focusing on the links between environmental and human health, says that many studies, including his own, suggest PVA can pass through wastewater treatment without completely degrading.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
29 Sep. 2025
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The mission emphasized that detaining adolescents under such conditions amounts to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
23 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Belittling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/belittling. Accessed 5 Oct. 2025.
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