degrade

[dih-greyd, dee-greyd] / dɪˈgreɪd, diˈgreɪd /

VERB

shame, humiliate

Synonyms

STRONGEST

cheapen corrupt debase degenerate demean deteriorate diminish discredit disgrace downgrade impair lessen reduce vitiate weaken

STRONG

abase belittle bench break bump bust canker debauch decry demote depose deprave derogate detract disbar dishonor disparage humble injure lower pan pervert sink slam

WEAK

bemean cast down cut down to size declass mudsling put down rule out run down shoot down take down take down a peg tear down

Antonyms

STRONGEST

aid assist develop enhance enlarge expand extend grow help honor improve increase praise purify raise strengthen upgrade

STRONG

build up compliment exalt fix flatter laud mend promote rise

WEAK

admire approve elevate

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“It’s the fastest way to degrade your loyalty and satisfaction among the people who are traveling with you, because they feel like they’re being nickeled and dimed,” Taylor told me.

From Slate • May 12, 2026

Current versions can degrade over time, which limits their long-term reliability.

From Science Daily • May 4, 2026

But as it stands, these product partnerships degrade the value of the original film and the property as an artistic entity.

From Salon • Apr. 20, 2026

A handshake between the protagonists disguises hell-bent hunger to degrade each other as far as non-contact sport allows.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026

In this they are quite unlike testimonies, which degrade as they pass from ear to ear in an endless game of Chinese whispers; eighteenth-century probability theorists actually devised formulae for calculating this rate of degradation.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Vocabulary lists containing degrade

30 GRE Words Beginning with "D"

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

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How Low Can You Go? Synonyms for "Downward"

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