as in insulting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
made degrading comments about his so-called friend behind his back
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in reducing
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 deteriorating
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 humiliating
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 degrading
Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2025
The result is an altering of the model weight by a whopping 216, degrading model accuracy from 80 percent to 0.1 percent, said Gururaj Saileshwar, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto and co-author of an academic paper demonstrating the attack.
—ArsTechnica, 14 July 2025
Dave Smith, Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
Airstrikes, however, won’t be any more effective at degrading the cartels or diminishing the flow of drugs into the United States than ground operations would be.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Mercury News, 30 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrading
Adjective
In a degrading battery, the researchers observed two key signs of trouble.
—Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2025
The result is an altering of the model weight by a whopping 216, degrading model accuracy from 80 percent to 0.1 percent, said Gururaj Saileshwar, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto and co-author of an academic paper demonstrating the attack.
—ArsTechnica, 14 July 2025
Verb
Are officials degrading citizens’ Internet access to sell them VPNs?
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 2 Sep. 2025
Airstrikes, however, won’t be any more effective at degrading the cartels or diminishing the flow of drugs into the United States than ground operations would be.
—Daniel R. Depetris, Mercury News, 30 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for degrading
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrading
Adjective
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To educate all of them in similar ways is insulting, and silly.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Perkins said the drink bore the insulting message.—
Victoria Moorwood,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The findings have led to the development of potential medical treatments that scientists hope could cure autoimmune diseases, the committee said, as well as providing more effective cancer treatments and reducing complications after stem cell and organ transplants.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
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Research has shown the benefits of exercise in mitigating the effects of aging by increasing blood flow to the brain and reducing the risk of chronic conditions, such as heart disease.—
Alexa Mikhail,
Flow Space,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Mann’s Heat starred Al Pacino as a hardened Los Angeles cop named Vincent Hanna who, ignoring his deteriorating personal life, is obsessed with tracking down career criminal Neil McCauley (Robert De Niro), who wants to pull off one last heist before retiring.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Oct. 2025
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Many remain acutely aware of how their abilities are deteriorating.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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This announcement, humiliating the involved member, is harmful.—
Kelly G. Richardson,
Oc Register,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Considering this poor return (scoring points was a key target in demoting Doohan for Colapinto), Briatore acknowledged during the Dutch GP weekend that Alpine may have unnecessarily burdened its young Argentine driver.—
Madeline Coleman,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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Spirit has been looking for ways to slash costs, including furloughing and demoting hundreds more pilots and cutting unprofitable routes.—
Leslie Josephs,
CNBC,
26 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Tales From Beyond the Pale co-creator Glenn McQuaid unleashes a Jason Voorhees whose appearance is concealed not by a hockey mask but a squiggly blur of video noise, corrupting the handheld footage of him stalking college kids through the woods.—
A.A. Dowd,
Vulture,
3 Oct. 2025
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The additional time exposed to harsh radiation is, not surprisingly, corrupting JunoCam's images.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Already, Cuba’s top diplomats have been sharing propaganda content discrediting Machado as a warmonger.—
Nora Gamez Torres,
Miami Herald,
10 Oct. 2025
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There would be accusations of race manipulation, an online mob discrediting Wallace’s win as undeserved, and an angry Joe Gibbs Racing organization, which would now realize Hamlin puts another team’s interests ahead of their own.—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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For decades, Indigenous leaders and advocates across the state and country have been trying to convince school communities that the use of such mascots and logos are inappropriate, demeaning and harmful.—
Frank Vaisvilas,
jsonline.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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One detainee who submitted an account to the court that was referenced by Gregorio described sleeping in foul-smelling facilities and facing demeaning treatment by ICE agents.—
Molly Crane-Newman,
New York Daily News,
12 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Degrading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrading. Accessed 13 Oct. 2025.
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