cankering

verb

present participle of canker
as in degrading
to lower in character, dignity, or quality such shameless ambulance chasing cankers the legal profession

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cankering
  1. degrading
  2. deteriorating
  3. poisoning
  4. weakening
  5. corrupting
  6. humiliating
  7. subverting
  8. damaging
Verb
  • Experts told the Herald that the use of such cages as punishment could violate international laws against torture and degrading treatment.
    — Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Local farms face ever degrading soil conditions, tougher markets and more extreme weather patterns.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of degrading
Verb
  • The sketch took aim at reports of deteriorating conditions aboard the aircraft carrier, including plumbing issues and mental-health struggles among the crew during their extended deployment.
    — Anna Tingley, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026
  • Massillon’s courage Throughout the attacks, Massillon was the first official to alert journalists, describing the deteriorating security situation while also appealing for help.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of deteriorating
Verb
  • James Folta considers how generative AI is poisoning the literary well for everyone.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The government was the one that was poisoning the industrial alcohol the people were stealing to make bathtub gin.
    — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of poisoning
Verb
  • Mortgage demand continues to drop sharply, as buyers face higher prices and weakening affordability.
    — Diana Olick, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The upper-level trough over the western United States will gradually advance eastward, weakening the influence of the ridge that has kept us hot and relatively dry.
    — Michael Autovino, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of weakening
Verb
  • Documentarian Alex Gibney is no stranger to dissections of corrupting power — from his feature dives into Enron, Elizabeth Holmes and Scientology.
    — Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Delphi sits above a geologic vent, an X from which noxious gases escaped the earth, corrupting the minds of women who inhaled and pronounced their prophecies.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of corrupting
Verb
  • The Iranians are now setting the terms of this conflict and are routinely humiliating the American president.
    — Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 8 July 2026
  • Instead of demanding personal fealty or humiliating them to assert personal dominance, Lincoln absorbed their egos and occasional slights, elevating their talents and turning his fiercest political adversaries into his most devoted champions.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 24 June 2026
Definition of humiliating
Verb
  • According to tax authorities, by inappropriately avoiding gains, investors are subverting the intention of the rules.
    — Cheryl Winokur Munk, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
  • There’s a guilty pleasure in subverting a cheesy tourist tee.
    — Alexandra Hildreth, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of subverting
Verb
  • The 2025 decision came after the group claimed responsibility for breaking into a major air base, RAF Brize Norton, northwest of London, and damaging aircraft.
    — Inaya Folarin Iman, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
  • In October 2025, Baja California’s prosecutor said a drone dropped homemade explosive devices at an anti-kidnapping prosecutor’s office in Tijuana, damaging four vehicles but causing no injuries.
    — Armando Regil Velasco, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of damaging
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.

Browse Nearby Words

cankered
cankering
cankers
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Cite this Entry

“Cankering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cankering. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

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