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
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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
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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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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of degrade
These help slow down the wear and tear that degrades most traditional joysticks over time.
—
Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 2 Oct. 2025
But warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels, disease and human activity, such as pollution, have severely degraded Florida's reefs, according to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 1 Oct. 2025
The team’s goal is to track and predict how asphalt roads degrade.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2025
These microRNA specifically target and degrade messenger RNA carrying the instructions to build more huntingtin protein, therefore lowering the amount of huntingtin protein in the cell.
—Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrade
Zackery Cuevas, PC Magazine, 2 Oct. 2025
But warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels, disease and human activity, such as pollution, have severely degraded Florida's reefs, according to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.
—Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 1 Oct. 2025
The team’s goal is to track and predict how asphalt roads degrade.
—Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 1 Oct. 2025
These microRNA specifically target and degrade messenger RNA carrying the instructions to build more huntingtin protein, therefore lowering the amount of huntingtin protein in the cell.
—Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 30 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrade
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrade
Verb
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Onboarding can be personalized based on the team and role, helping people get productive faster and reducing the need for additional training.—
Jessica Coacci,
Fortune,
9 Oct. 2025
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This means targeted improvements could significantly reduce overall pollution without an industry-wide overhaul.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Breaking them down to save for a later date isn’t enough, as bugs will still nestle their way in even as the cardboard deteriorates.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
1 Oct. 2025
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Advertisement Our hygiene deteriorates.—
Eli Sharabi,
Time,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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An Italian activist who was part of the Gaza aid flotilla and subsequently detained by Israel has described allegations of being mistreated and humiliated while in Israeli custody, with little access to legal assistance.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
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Even its most mean-spirited plotline, in which a married couple assemble a fake theater production to humiliate their ex-neighbor whose noisiness prompted them to move, is presented as more of a gentle exercise in silliness than anything truly vindictive.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Flacco played in four games for Cleveland in 2025, starting all of them and leading the team to a 1-3 mark before he was demoted in favor of Gabriel.—
Max Dible,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Oct. 2025
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But Old Man Nate’s ascension to the big four means Jawan has been officially demoted to the minor leagues.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For investors, even opposition threats of repeal weaken confidence by raising doubts about long-term policy stability.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
3 Oct. 2025
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While his core supporters remain loyal, sustained disapproval among the broader public could weaken his leverage in negotiations with Congress and erode confidence in his leadership.—
Robert Birsel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Khan and his lawyers have contended that Netanyahu and his allies are exploiting a vulnerable woman in order to discredit the case against the Israeli leaders.—
David D. Kirkpatrick,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
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Felt, in classic Hoover fashion, then leaked information to discredit Gray, hoping to replace him.—
Douglas M. Charles,
The Conversation,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The show also subverted what the traditional mother-daughter relationship, and the role of a mother in general, can look like in the modern world.—
Anna Tingley,
Variety,
3 Oct. 2025
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The film examines how boundaries are inscribed and looks to plants as models for subverting systems of control.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The minor student created memes and posted them on the Instagram account to embarrass and make fun of the students.—
Alec Johnson,
jsonline.com,
1 Oct. 2025
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That behavior is embarrassing anywhere, and goes against all of golf etiquette.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
30 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Degrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrade. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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