1
as in reduces
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 deteriorates
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
degrading the school's animal mascot with a silly costume
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in humiliates
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 degrades
That process extends shelf life but also degrades the live enzymes and micronutrients that make fresh juice worth drinking in the first place.
—
Avery Newmark, AJC.com, 6 Apr. 2026
Most retinol products are restricted to nighttime use because the ingredient degrades in sunlight, so this flexibility is a genuine differentiator.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Phase 1 degrades military power and holds hostage the regime’s economic lifelines.
—Richard Goldberg, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
And the implants can sometimes move or cause scar tissue buildup over time that degrades their signals.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 13 Mar. 2026
Vigilance degrades; that is its nature.
—Robert B. Shpiner, STAT, 13 Mar. 2026
Accurate predictions of when and where an uncontrolled spacecraft will fall back to Earth can be difficult to make because the process is influenced by atmospheric dynamics, space weather and the probe’s positioning as its orbit degrades.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 10 Mar. 2026
Even the best, thickest landscape fabric degrades.
—Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 7 Mar. 2026
Announced on March 6, this development addresses the issue of transistor overheating, which typically degrades processor performance.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 6 Mar. 2026
Avery Newmark, AJC.com, 6 Apr. 2026
Most retinol products are restricted to nighttime use because the ingredient degrades in sunlight, so this flexibility is a genuine differentiator.
—Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 30 Mar. 2026
Phase 1 degrades military power and holds hostage the regime’s economic lifelines.
—Richard Goldberg, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
And the implants can sometimes move or cause scar tissue buildup over time that degrades their signals.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 13 Mar. 2026
Vigilance degrades; that is its nature.
—Robert B. Shpiner, STAT, 13 Mar. 2026
Accurate predictions of when and where an uncontrolled spacecraft will fall back to Earth can be difficult to make because the process is influenced by atmospheric dynamics, space weather and the probe’s positioning as its orbit degrades.
—Denise Chow, NBC news, 10 Mar. 2026
Even the best, thickest landscape fabric degrades.
—Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 7 Mar. 2026
Announced on March 6, this development addresses the issue of transistor overheating, which typically degrades processor performance.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 6 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrades
Verb
-
Acidification reduces the pH of seawater, which also diminishes sound absorption, so the stain of ship’s engine noise spreads further, muffling the songs of humpbacks and the codas of sperm whales.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Each option reduces overall productivity, cutting supplies of basic foods, feed for livestock and key ingredients used in a wide range of food products.—
Aya S. Chacar,
Fortune,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
And as our credit deteriorates, borrowing gets more expensive, forcing us to borrow more to keep up, which worsens our credit further.—
Bill Conway,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Mar. 2026
-
When hospitals operate under extreme and unpredictable demand spikes, patient safety deteriorates.—
Eugene Litvak,
STAT,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Later that season, Eric humiliates Bill in front of their Pierpoint colleagues by insulting his work quality and Bill dies from brain cancer.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Thecla humiliates him by ripping his robe and tearing the wreath off his head.—
Christy Cobb,
The Conversation,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Similar to airline tickets or ride-sharing fares, prices may rise when demand exceeds available seats and fall when demand weakens.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
2 Apr. 2026
-
This shift ignores local differences and weakens a decentralized model that has allowed rules to be tailored to the realities of each state.—
Cláudia Nunes,
The Orlando Sentinel,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The praiseworthyness of having both sides of the debate evaporates when the host actively discredits the expert and reflexively enhances the legitimacy of the conspiracy theorist.—
Rafael Perez,
Oc Register,
1 Dec. 2025
-
Yet despite its popularity, research discredits this long-standing belief.—
Taryn White,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
His relationship with his Jewish neighbors, the Brodskys, grows closer as Nazi power corrupts France.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
-
As Jay Jonah Atterbury, one of a handful of new characters on the fourth season of Industry, Kal Penn weaponizes and corrupts the stoner quirks viewers may recognize from his years playing Kumar Patel in the Harold & Kumar films.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Now the technology embarrasses an umpire even more than a player could, and what’s the recourse?—
Jim Alexander,
Oc Register,
4 Apr. 2026
-
But the stunt goes south as Wooley turns out to be an unabashed bigot who embarrasses the show and gets scolded by the host.—
Erik Pedersen,
Deadline,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The story begins on a train, somewhat subverts the typical strangers-on-a-train narrative in which a chance encounter leads to a love story (that is, the Linklater version rather than the Hitchcock one).—
Deborah Treisman,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
-
The play subverts itself, never allowing an audience to gain a commanding foothill, even at the end when (suffice it to say) the watchers become the watched.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Degrades.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrades. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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