DEHUMANIZATION Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

dehumanize

verb

(ˌ)dē-ˈ(h)yü-mə-ˌnīz

Definition of dehumanize

as in to humiliate

to make (someone) feel or behave more like an animal than a human being being deprived of clothes dehumanized the prisoners

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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 dehumanize To dehumanize Jews, invoke Goebbels and Nazi imagery, tell Jews to ‘go back to Poland,’ and describe a swastika painted outside a Jewish family’s home as an appropriate symbol for ‘zionazis’ is not criticism of Israel. — Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2026 The petition argues Mays’ language during the trial revealed something deeper than a poor defense strategy — a worldview that dehumanized the man he was supposed to defend. — Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026 The costume and the posture of the model in the photo drew comparisons online to images of the racist theatrical character Jim Crow, a staple in blackface minstrel shows, which dehumanized Black people. — Star Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026 The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan five years ago ushered in an era of dehumanizing restrictions for women and girls. — Dominique Soguel, Christian Science Monitor, 15 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dehumanize

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dehumanize

Verb

One of its proof points was supposed to be Maine, where Graham Platner humiliated the party establishment, then himself.

— David Weigel, semafor.com, 7 Oct. 2026
This caution is surprising in a writer who has elsewhere been fearless about identity and America, attentive to the country’s institutional capacity to humiliate, compromise, and implicate the people who claim it.

— Zain Khalid, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of humiliate

Verb

But critics have warned the gloves will give ICE another weapon to intimidate and brutalize people even as the agency is under fire for excessive force that has left a trail of deaths and injuries across the nation.

— ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
Allegations of abuse, inmates being brutalized by jailers, and dire conditions have plagued the facility for years, leading some county leaders, former sheriffs and civil rights advocates to call for the jail to be closed.

— James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of brutalize

Verb

What researchers uncovered through lab testing and surveillance footage, prosecutors said, was a plot by his fellow graduate student to intentionally poison him.

— Eduardo Cuevas, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
May says national polarization is poisoning the atmosphere locally.

— Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of poison

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dégringolades

dehumanize

dehumanized

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“Dehumanize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dehumanize. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of dehumanize

verb

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