deprecating

adjective

dep·​re·​cat·​ing ˈde-pri-ˌkā-tiŋ 

: tending or serving to disparage or belittle someone or something

a deprecating remark

Allagash tells you, with a deprecating roll of his eyes, that Vicky is studying Philosophy at Princeton.

—Jay McInerney

There are little judgments on him throughout the text, sometimes mildly deprecating, sometimes robustly defensive.

—The Times Literary Supplement (London)

see also self-deprecating

deprecatingly

ˈde-pri-ˌkā-tiŋ-lē 

adverb

The letter hints that he is upset about something which has caused him to feel 'nervous and sad' and he ends by deprecatingly referring to himself as a 'dull pupil'.

—The Gloucestershire Echo

Examples of deprecating in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Bland has a similar deprecating sense of humor. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 June 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1812, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing deprecating

• self-deprecating