as in humiliating
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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Recent Examples of dehumanizing
Immigration detainees have described life inside the west suburban processing facility as dehumanizing, a Tribune investigation over the summer found.
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Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 22 Feb. 2026
Additionally, there has been a climate of dehumanizing rhetoric by the nation's leaders, as well as a normalization of the use of threats and harassment against those on the other side of an issue, Hiller said.
—Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 19 Feb. 2026
Bad Bunny, Kehlani, Olivia Dean, Shaboozey, SZA, and Billie Eilish all used their platforms at the Grammys to talk about how ICE is dehumanizing immigrants and terrorizing American communities.
—Kathleen Newman-Bremang, Refinery29, 9 Feb. 2026
In a chilling pattern, there are systematic efforts to sow disinformation, hate speech, and dehumanizing images in areas where militants want to carry out operations.
—Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dehumanizing
Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 22 Feb. 2026
Additionally, there has been a climate of dehumanizing rhetoric by the nation's leaders, as well as a normalization of the use of threats and harassment against those on the other side of an issue, Hiller said.
—Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 19 Feb. 2026
Bad Bunny, Kehlani, Olivia Dean, Shaboozey, SZA, and Billie Eilish all used their platforms at the Grammys to talk about how ICE is dehumanizing immigrants and terrorizing American communities.
—Kathleen Newman-Bremang, Refinery29, 9 Feb. 2026
In a chilling pattern, there are systematic efforts to sow disinformation, hate speech, and dehumanizing images in areas where militants want to carry out operations.
—Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for dehumanizing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dehumanizing
Verb
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State caseworkers have sent an untold number of elders in their care to a coterie of homes with a history of hurting, ignoring or humiliating their residents, records and anguished families say.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
2 Apr. 2026
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These clips often use humor and pop‑culture aesthetics—even LEGO‑style animations—to show Iran’s late supreme leader outsmarting and humiliating his American adversaries.—
Newsweek Editors,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The charge comes as some advocates and community members have clamored for Illinois officials to pursue criminal cases against immigration agents who have been accused of brutalizing city and suburban residents during their 64-day Operation Midway Blitz in the fall.—
Madeline Buckley,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Jan. 2026
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Art the Clown likes brutalizing women.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Protesters, however, say that HERC, which neighbors Target Field near the North Loop neighborhood, is responsible for essentially poisoning people who live nearby.—
Conor Wight,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
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In the Middle Ages, local churchgoers whispered of clannish Jews poisoning wells to kill Christian children and steal their blood for their rituals.—
Mike Rothschild,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Dehumanizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dehumanizing. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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