1
as in to reduce
to bring to a lower grade or rank
the view that such a system degrades doctors to the status of medical employees who ultimately are not in charge of their patients' health care
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to deteriorate
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
degrading the school's animal mascot with a silly costume
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to humiliate
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
the players degraded themselves with their crude antics off the field
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of degrade
Gasoline mixed with ethanol degrades even faster than pure gasoline and may not even last three months.
—
Kamron Sanders, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Oct. 2025
OpenAI, for example, has acknowledged that safety features can degrade during longer chats.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2025
Avoid light, heat, and moisture, which can degrade the quality of your spices.
—Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 18 Oct. 2025
The setup only degrades further over the four episodes screened for critics.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrade
Kamron Sanders, Better Homes & Gardens, 19 Oct. 2025
OpenAI, for example, has acknowledged that safety features can degrade during longer chats.
—Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 19 Oct. 2025
Avoid light, heat, and moisture, which can degrade the quality of your spices.
—Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 18 Oct. 2025
The setup only degrades further over the four episodes screened for critics.
—Alison Herman, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrade
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrade
Verb
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As part of a plea agreement, the murder charge was reduced to involuntary manslaughter, and the remaining charges were dismissed.—
Robert A. Cronkleton,
Kansas City Star,
22 Oct. 2025
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Additional heavy rainfall is possible beyond Saturday; however, uncertainty in Melissa's track and forward speed reduces confidence in exact totals.—
MIAMI HERALD HURRICANE BOT,
Miami Herald,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Instead, the property has passed hands from private owner to private owner, hidden from view off a lonely winding road, slowly deteriorating over the years.—
Amanda Rosa
October 23,
Miami Herald,
23 Oct. 2025
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Grid operators are warning of steep increases in electricity demand for the first time in decades, leading utilities to race to expand capacity by reviving plans for natural-gas plants or building new ones, and, in some regions, even extending the life of deteriorating coal facilities.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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There was this huge peak between 2000 and about 2018 where there was a decentralized anti-Fascist movement that’s responsible for Richard Spencer going home, for Matthew Heimbach being humiliated.—
Fiction Non Fiction,
Literary Hub,
23 Oct. 2025
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Pressing for payment could humiliate people, who often arrive with their extended families, Parmar explained, and in a community this close-knit, that could mean losing dozens of patients, including many of the Medicaid patients who keep the clinic afloat.—
Helen Ouyang,
The Atlantic,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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He was demoted to an affiliate deal with the South Bay Lakers, LA's NBAGL squad in El Segundo, at the start of the 2023-24 season.—
Alex Kirschenbaum,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Oct. 2025
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The King has always been reluctant to cut off his brother completely, and even their mother, Queen Elizabeth II, only went as far as to demote him as a working royal without taking away his title or his comforts.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Losing him for the entire World Series would weaken their already-thin bullpen, and force Roberts to get creative in high-leverage situations after his starting pitcher has been removed.—
Jon Paul Hoornstra,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
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After accounting for lifestyle variables like exercise, the effects weakened a bit as, for example, more active people tend to spend more time outdoors.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The study authors looked at 13 samples and found no traces of typhus, but their work does not discredit the findings of the 2006 study, the researchers noted.—
Taylor Nicioli,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
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Many fans have welcomed her to the two-time winners club, joining the likes of Tony Vlachos and Sandra Diaz-Twine, while others have discredited her triumph.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But Interview With the Vampire set a precedent for transformative TV from the Immortal Universe, its narrative and visual audacity subverting adaptation tropes and genre storytelling by challenging viewers’ notions of immortality, sexuality, and destiny.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
25 Oct. 2025
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But Larry, a true cynic, was stuck in a different time, gagged and bound by a tireless insistence on creating art that subverted and satirized those same good old-fashioned family values.—
Michael Cuby,
Them.,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin, the heist spotlights embarrassing security failings at one of France’s most venerable institutions.—
Jacqui Palumbo,
CNN Money,
21 Oct. 2025
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The New York Mets fell short of the postseason in embarrassing fashion last season, so this offseason is going to be more important than ever.—
Zach Pressnell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Degrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrade. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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