as in insulting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
demanded an apology for his demeaning comments
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in degrading
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
it demeans the political process to demand that candidates make promises that everyone knows are unrealistic
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in humiliating
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
his statement was not meant to demean the group's hard work
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in behaving
to manage the actions of (oneself) in a particular way
I shall endeavor to demean myself with utmost respect when our pastor comes to visit
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 demeaning
Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025
Depicting Americans as arrogant, loud, boorish and demeaning of other cultures, the term has stuck and is still mentioned 60-plus years later.
—Jenny Peters, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025
Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2025
And Max will not stop demeaning him.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for demeaning
Adjective
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
Depicting Americans as arrogant, loud, boorish and demeaning of other cultures, the term has stuck and is still mentioned 60-plus years later.
—Jenny Peters, Oc Register, 4 Aug. 2025
Verb
Like me, Tommy would have looked to the culture around him to learn the language of demeaning women.
—Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2025
And Max will not stop demeaning him.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for demeaning
Recent Examples of Synonyms for demeaning
Adjective
-
Altman seems to find the question insulting.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
10 Nov. 2025
-
To educate all of them in similar ways is insulting, and silly.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Bosch also emphasized her respect for Thailand and encouraged women not to tolerate degrading treatment.—
Sarah Moreno,
Miami Herald,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Charles Rolsky, executive director and senior research scientist at the Shaw Institute, a nonprofit focusing on the links between environmental and human health, says that many studies, including his own, suggest PVA can pass through wastewater treatment without completely degrading.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
On Friday, Angels lawyer Stephen Ladsous showed Tarter his X account, which had multiple retweets of derogatory posts about team owner Arte Moreno.—
Sam Blum,
New York Times,
10 Nov. 2025
-
In a May 2025 interview with the Daily Mail, Davis denied talking about his political views or using derogatory language around Stause.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious links that install malware, potentially accessing your private information, is to have strong antivirus software installed on all your devices.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
8 Nov. 2025
-
For many of Modi’s supporters, Mamdani’s rhetoric is seen as a malicious attack on the country’s majority religion.—
Rhea Mogul,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Emily’s father didn’t say it in a disparaging way—more like That was just Ryan.—
Jamie Thompson,
The Atlantic,
6 Nov. 2025
-
And there would be lots of soldiers around, either Army or National Guard, and the people who were civilians would be young people, very disparaging about the military.—
Steve Baltin,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The biopic also stars Ben Foster as the trainer who becomes her abusive husband.—
Lexy Perez,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Nov. 2025
-
At one point during the hearing, Richards pleaded for a tissue and began crying while recalling a particularly abusive event in May.—
Tracy Wright , Christina Dugan Ramirez , Lauryn Overhultz,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The intensity of Irish expressions of solidarity in 2024 caused one pro-Israel commentator, Ben Cohen, to coin the term Paddystinian as a derisive epithet to counter the narrative, conflating the pejorative stereotype of the drunken Paddy with Palestine.—
Philip Metres
August 27,
Literary Hub,
27 Aug. 2025
-
In fact, locals use a different (and pejorative) term for the other versions: arroz con cosas, or rice with things.—
Sofia Perez,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
Adjective
-
Neither party admitted to liability and each agreed to refrain from making disparaging, negative or uncomplimentary statements about the other, the document said.—
Lorraine Mirabella,
Baltimore Sun,
29 July 2022
-
Though the pollen gunk will pass, he's concerned by a contingent of Twitter trolls who've shared uncomplimentary reviews of his recent North American tour.—
Jordan Runtagh,
PEOPLE.com,
21 Jan. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Demeaning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/demeaning. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share