as in reduced
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 demoted
Of note, the network demoted (and then extended) Doris Burke, while Tim Legler got called up to the finals team with Breen and Richard Jefferson.
—
Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Flacco played in four games for Cleveland in 2025, starting all of them and leading the team to a 1-3 mark before he was demoted in favor of Gabriel.
—Max Dible, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
But Old Man Nate’s ascension to the big four means Jawan has been officially demoted to the minor leagues.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Oct. 2025
The character is a former tactical officer demoted to patrol by her supervisor after noting his tendencies to avoid any real work to preserve his pension.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2025
The video went viral, triggering backlash from Republican lawmakers who called for McCoul to be fired and praised the fact that the school also demoted the College of Arts and Science’s dean and revoked administrative duties from a department head.
—Laura Gail Miller, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2025
The city denied she was terminated or demoted, just reassigned.
—Colleen Slevin, Denver Post, 26 Sep. 2025
In February 2024, several months after Robinson received a positive performance review, the investigation was closed and Robinson was demoted two classifications to a correctional lieutenant.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2025
The butt of these jokes is Mike Waltz, the ambitious former congressman and national security adviser who was unceremoniously demoted to Turtle Bay in April for a series of sins that add up to not being MAGA enough.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2025
Jenny Catlin, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Flacco played in four games for Cleveland in 2025, starting all of them and leading the team to a 1-3 mark before he was demoted in favor of Gabriel.
—Max Dible, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
But Old Man Nate’s ascension to the big four means Jawan has been officially demoted to the minor leagues.
—Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Oct. 2025
The character is a former tactical officer demoted to patrol by her supervisor after noting his tendencies to avoid any real work to preserve his pension.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 1 Oct. 2025
The video went viral, triggering backlash from Republican lawmakers who called for McCoul to be fired and praised the fact that the school also demoted the College of Arts and Science’s dean and revoked administrative duties from a department head.
—Laura Gail Miller, The Conversation, 30 Sep. 2025
The city denied she was terminated or demoted, just reassigned.
—Colleen Slevin, Denver Post, 26 Sep. 2025
In February 2024, several months after Robinson received a positive performance review, the investigation was closed and Robinson was demoted two classifications to a correctional lieutenant.
—William Melhado, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2025
The butt of these jokes is Mike Waltz, the ambitious former congressman and national security adviser who was unceremoniously demoted to Turtle Bay in April for a series of sins that add up to not being MAGA enough.
—Ben Smith, semafor.com, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for demoted
Verb
-
In return, the US has reduced tariffs on Japanese goods, including cars, to a baseline of 15%.—
Hanako Montgomery,
CNN Money,
11 Oct. 2025
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All spending was re-evaluated, vendor contracts renegotiated, staffing reduced and space consolidated to save maintenance costs.—
Jan Goldsmith,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Chiefs are back, just as quickly as they were dismissed, and that’s in more than ways than post-game one-liners exuding some confidence after a convincing 30-17 win against the red-hot Lions.—
Sam McDowell
October 13,
Kansas City Star,
13 Oct. 2025
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And these cases may very well be dismissed on that basis.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Not to mention, Texas Tech sacked Kansas nine times.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
12 Oct. 2025
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He was sacked nine times and only garnered 31 rushing yards on seven carries.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
12 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Demoted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/demoted. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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