as in to reduce
to bring to a lower grade or rank
the court-martial's decision was to demote the officer responsible for the failed mission
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Recent Examples of demote
Or, rather, demoted her to United States Special Envoy for The Shield of the Americas, whatever that is.
—
Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
In late January, the president put border czar Tom Homan in charge of the crackdown, effectively demoting the Border Patrol’s Greg Bovino.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026
He was demoted from sergeant and suspended for six days.
—Ashley Luthern, jsonline.com, 5 Mar. 2026
Once Watson and Gordon are both back, Watson will probably be coming off the bench for the first time since mid-November, unless Adelman wants to make a more dramatic change by demoting someone from his starting lineup.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for demote
Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune, 8 Mar. 2026
In late January, the president put border czar Tom Homan in charge of the crackdown, effectively demoting the Border Patrol’s Greg Bovino.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 6 Mar. 2026
He was demoted from sergeant and suspended for six days.
—Ashley Luthern, jsonline.com, 5 Mar. 2026
Once Watson and Gordon are both back, Watson will probably be coming off the bench for the first time since mid-November, unless Adelman wants to make a more dramatic change by demoting someone from his starting lineup.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 2 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for demote
Recent Examples of Synonyms for demote
Verb
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Protective styles like low buns or braids can also reduce frizz throughout the day.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
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In her tenure, Colorado has taken major steps to increase price transparency, reduce hospital and prescription drug costs, and hold the health care industry accountable.—
Shaun Boyd,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Johnson dismissed the criticism.—
Jack Fink,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
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Red flags worth walking away from include dismissing symptoms without investigation, attributing everything to stress or anxiety, discouraging second opinions and making patients feel rushed.—
Allison Palmer,
Miami Herald,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Demote.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/demote. Accessed 1 Apr. 2026.
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