cheapen

verb

cheap·​en ˈchē-pən 

cheapened; cheapening

ˈchēp-niŋ,

ˈchē-pə- 

transitive verb

1

[obsolete English cheap to price, bid for] archaic

a

: to ask the price of

b

: to bid or bargain for

2

a

: to make cheap in price or value

b

: to lower in general esteem

c

: to make tawdry, vulgar, or inferior

intransitive verb

: to become cheap

Synonyms

• attenuate
• break
• depreciate
• depress
• devaluate
• devalue
• downgrade
• lower
• mark down
• reduce
• sink
• write down
• write off

Examples of cheapen in a Sentence

products cheapened by sloppy workmanship

Using the national flag in advertising only cheapens it.

Poor marketing can cheapen a brand name.

I thought that the show cheapened the lives of the people it portrayed.

The wedding ceremony was cheapened by the best man's tasteless jokes.

Recent Examples on the Web

Otto is also suicidal — something A Man Called Otto never sufficiently dramatizes, cheapening the codger’s despair as the film prepares for the feel-good ending to come. —Tim Grierson, Vulture, 2 Nov. 2024

Regardless of the game’s quality, the deliberately profit-minded release model cheapens the spirit of the series, and is a practice that feels wholly antithetical to Life is Strange’s ethos. —Isaiah Colbert, Rolling Stone, 21 Oct. 2024

Toy Story 4 was okay, but in some ways cheapened the perfect ending to the previous film. —Erik Kain, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024

The Lego format doesn’t cheapen the power of his message, but rather reflects the quirky, outside-the-box thinking of the artist himself, who has always marched to the beat of his own drum, steering the cultural ship according to his unique point of view. —Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1562, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1