as in degrades
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
by insisting that she pay me for helping her, she subverted my noble desire to do a good deed without reward
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Recent Examples of subverts
Kon subverts slasher tropes and nimbly toys with reality, constantly upending audience expectations and keeping us on our toes.
—
Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
The ruched toe boxes are another style that playfully subverts the classic loafer design, offering an unfussy ease that helps soften more masculine tailoring.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 17 Oct. 2025
DiCaprio, 50, subverts his Hollywood leading man image by wearing a ratty red robe, unkempt hair and oversized sunglasses as former revolutionary and current stoner Bob Ferguson, who is forced back into action to save himself and his daughter (Chase Infiniti) from paramilitary enforcers.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
Advertisement The film largely follows the trajectory of the novel, but changes some details along the way—and adds one new, final twist that subverts the overall message of King's dystopian tale.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
On view through October 18, the exhibition subverts traditional notions of perception, born from Calle’s bold takeover of the museum.
—Natasha Gural, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Much of how the show subverts expectation is through its cast — Will Lipton, Zendé Murdock, Axel Ellis, Jesse Golliher, and Jeremy Yun — a group of twenty-somethings hailing from across the country who, since their casting, have become a real band amid an industry rock resurgence.
—Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
At the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas, a team of researchers revealed how Gemini can be weaponized via Targeted Promptware Attacks—malware that subverts Gemini through its input prompts.
—PC Magazine, 8 Aug. 2025
Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Oct. 2025
The ruched toe boxes are another style that playfully subverts the classic loafer design, offering an unfussy ease that helps soften more masculine tailoring.
—Jake Henry Smith, Glamour, 17 Oct. 2025
DiCaprio, 50, subverts his Hollywood leading man image by wearing a ratty red robe, unkempt hair and oversized sunglasses as former revolutionary and current stoner Bob Ferguson, who is forced back into action to save himself and his daughter (Chase Infiniti) from paramilitary enforcers.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 23 Sep. 2025
Advertisement The film largely follows the trajectory of the novel, but changes some details along the way—and adds one new, final twist that subverts the overall message of King's dystopian tale.
—Megan McCluskey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
On view through October 18, the exhibition subverts traditional notions of perception, born from Calle’s bold takeover of the museum.
—Natasha Gural, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Much of how the show subverts expectation is through its cast — Will Lipton, Zendé Murdock, Axel Ellis, Jesse Golliher, and Jeremy Yun — a group of twenty-somethings hailing from across the country who, since their casting, have become a real band amid an industry rock resurgence.
—Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 6 Sep. 2025
At the Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas, a team of researchers revealed how Gemini can be weaponized via Targeted Promptware Attacks—malware that subverts Gemini through its input prompts.
—PC Magazine, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subverts
Verb
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The goal is to understand exactly how and why performance degrades over time.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Oct. 2025
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Gasoline mixed with ethanol degrades even faster than pure gasoline and may not even last three months.—
Kamron Sanders,
Better Homes & Gardens,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Without light and air, the grass weakens and dies instead of going into winter dormancy.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
30 Oct. 2025
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For many shrubs, pruning in the fall weakens the plant by spurring tender new growth that is vulnerable to coming frosts.—
Erica Browne Grivas,
Better Homes & Gardens,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Absolute power corrupts absolutely.—
Heidi Stevens,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Each participant had lost central vision in one eye due to dry AMD, which destroys light-sensitive macular cells over time.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Oct. 2025
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An arson fire destroys the 43-year-old Globe Theatre on March 8 (the arsonist was never caught, but a firebug had set several blazes in the park that winter).—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
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To show him who’s boss, Catherine turns around and buys Pac-North, humiliates him by closing it, and forces him back to Grey Sloan.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
9 Oct. 2025
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There’s always a moment in which somebody humiliates the villain and now all the love in him is gone.—
Daniel D'Addario,
Variety,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Opponents argue that the new map dilutes the voting power of Black residents in eastern North Carolina.—
Adam Wagner,
NPR,
21 Oct. 2025
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Yes, growth is tempting — launching podcasts, videos, new products — but every expansion dilutes focus.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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As the situation deteriorates, the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany among others have urged their nationals to leave Bamako.—
Tim Lister,
CNN Money,
2 Nov. 2025
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Exposure to such content also deteriorates her audience’s ability to form beliefs on the basis of the evidence and primes them for skepticism toward consequential matters like vaccines and medicine.—
Rafael Perez,
Oc Register,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
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That conflict comes to a head in the middle of campus in the film’s most intense scene, as Alma verbally belittles and demeans her until Maggie snaps and suddenly smacks her mentor.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
15 Oct. 2025
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That’s another lazy phrase that demeans the dynamic of sport.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
11 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subverts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subverts. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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