DEGRADE! Synonyms: 173 Similar and Opposite Words

degrade

verb

di-ˈgrād

Definition of degrade

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

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

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

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.

Recent Examples of degrade For instance, excess ions fail to enter the graphite quickly enough and form performance-degrading metallic deposits on the surface (lithium plating). — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 24 Aug. 2026 Its stores of ballistic missiles and attack drones have been degraded. — Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026 The Tate brothers built a global following, became extremely wealthy, and gained cultural and political influence by degrading and harming women. — Jodi Bondi Norgaard, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026 If your bath mat has an anti-slip rubber or latex backing, know that the dryer’s high heat can degrade it over time. — Caroline Lubinsky, Martha Stewart, 24 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for degrade

Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrade

Verb

Its movements and squeaks change in response to the person interacting with it, giving caregivers another way to reduce distress and encourage engagement.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
For instance, a creditor might bid $35,000 for a $50,000 SUV, reducing the judgment by that amount, then sell it for $50,000, pocketing $15,000.

— Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of reduce

Verb

The Associated Press OSLO, Norway -- Crown Prince Haakon visited his father King Harald of Norway on Monday at the hospital, after the king's health deteriorated over the weekend, public broadcaster NRK reported.

— ABC News, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
Now held with dozens of others in a former luxury hotel turned makeshift prison, the group describe chains, deteriorating conditions, scarce medical care and guards accused of violence.

— Mark Banchereau, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of deteriorate

Verb

Much of the behavior on display is plainly harassment and bullying, often filmed without the subjects’ knowledge or consent and uploaded online to humiliate them further.

— Maggie Harrison Dupré, Futurism, 19 Aug. 2026
In their first national title game, the Wildcats humiliated Oklahoma in the national semifinal by 44, and in their second, demoralized Michigan in the title game by 17.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of humiliate

Verb

An officer with the Porter County Sheriff’s Department who misused the county’s license plate reader system has been demoted, suspended without pay and faced other disciplinary measures, according to a release from Sheriff Jeffery Balon.

— Post-Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
But Miami shouldn’t hesitate to find and claim better receivers off the waiver wire, and possibly demote him to the practice squad.

— Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of demote

Verb

Even if Korea can maintain 2% economic growth over the next two decades, consumption growth gradually weakens and eventually turns negative, according to Goldman’s long-term modeling.

— Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2026
Riggs said the Teamsters’ safety argument is weakened by the inconsistent safety record of human truck drivers, who have fallen asleep at the wheel or driven while distracted or otherwise impaired.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of weaken

Verb

In trying to discredit public concerns about data centers as a psyop, Goldman and others said, tech leaders are taking a page out of the intelligence playbook themselves.

— Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
Inflicting these details on the jury, the children’s family members, and the public served no discernible purpose in establishing Clancy’s mens rea, which might have discredited her not-guilty plea.

— Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of discredit

Verb

The film’s procedural aspect ticks along just fine, holding the attention without subverting expectations, and carried by actors who, much like the detectives in this case, are ultra-capable professionals with no inclination to go rogue on us.

— Guy Lodge, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
The show also pokes fun at the late 1990s and early 2000s liberal cultural consensus that was upheld in other popular culture of the time while also both replicating and subverting stereotypes of suburban Southern white Americans.

— Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of subvert

Verb

For example, a relative’s benign remark about the texture of a turkey dinner at a family gathering might be interpreted by someone with schizophrenia as a statement meant to embarrass them.

— Matthew Kurtz, The Conversation, 20 Aug. 2026
College students should not have to worry about their parents embarrassing them to an audience of thousands.

— Mary Frances Ruskell, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of embarrass

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degradations

degrade

degraded

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“Degrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrade. Accessed 31 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of degrade

verb

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