1
as in to reduce
to bring to a lower grade or rank
the view that such a system degrades doctors to the status of medical employees who ultimately are not in charge of their patients' health care
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to deteriorate
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
degrading the school's animal mascot with a silly costume
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to humiliate
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
the players degraded themselves with their crude antics off the field
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of degrade
Bates says removing those questions will degrade the quality of the surveys and the data available to policymakers for addressing important societal trends.
—
Byjeffrey Mervis, science.org, 28 Jan. 2025
According to documents Ford submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a manufacturing defect can cause the batteries to degrade suddenly while driving.
—Camila Domonoske, NPR, 23 Jan. 2025
Then, the quality of information on the internet as a whole starts to degrade, and Google has less helpful content to serve back to users, Segal said, which could eventually chip away at Google’s formidable ad business.
—Richard Nieva, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
TikTok's quality is expected to worsen TikTok could remain available for U.S. users over the coming days and weeks but the app would likely degrade in quality, experts previously told ABC News.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 19 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for degrade 
Byjeffrey Mervis, science.org, 28 Jan. 2025
According to documents Ford submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a manufacturing defect can cause the batteries to degrade suddenly while driving.
—Camila Domonoske, NPR, 23 Jan. 2025
Then, the quality of information on the internet as a whole starts to degrade, and Google has less helpful content to serve back to users, Segal said, which could eventually chip away at Google’s formidable ad business.
—Richard Nieva, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2025
TikTok's quality is expected to worsen TikTok could remain available for U.S. users over the coming days and weeks but the app would likely degrade in quality, experts previously told ABC News.
—Max Zahn, ABC News, 19 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for degrade
Recent Examples of Synonyms for degrade
Verb
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Removing too may fronds reduces the vigor of the palm, as these portions manufacture nutrients needed to grow and remain healthy.—
Tom MacCubbin,
Orlando Sentinel,
8 Feb. 2025
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Living fences reduce soil erosion and stormwater runoff, while softening your house more than wood or steel fences.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
8 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Conditions are deteriorating in a network of Syrian prisons holding terrorists of the Islamic State.—
Bart Jansen,
USA TODAY,
14 Feb. 2025
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Despite the exciting success of the film in festivals and among journalists and audiences around the world, however, the situation here on the ground is deteriorating rapidly and the future looks bleak.—
Basel Adra,
IndieWire,
13 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The biggest threat facing the pair is senior MI6 official Jim Richardson (Hugh Bonneville), who has been keeping tabs on the Sudanese, and sees in Martian’s love for Samia an opportunity to both humiliate and strong-arm his former ally into sharing CIA secrets.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
24 Jan. 2025
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Someone may be a masochist but not into being humiliated.—
Fran Tirado,
Them,
10 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett was also demoted, and Joe Douglas was fired as the general manager.—
Antwan Staley,
New York Daily News,
13 Feb. 2025
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Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett was also demoted, and Joe Douglas was fired as the general manager during the Jets’ struggles.—
Antwan Staley,
Sun Sentinel,
13 Feb. 2025
Verb
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In the bond market, Treasury yields fell after a report said sales at U.S. retailers weakened by much more last month than economists expected.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Feb. 2025
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His executive order, unless reversed by the courts, will encourage greater corruption in Latin America, hurting the region’s economies, weakening democratic institutions and making countries poorer.—
Andres Oppenheimer,
Miami Herald,
14 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Lucy’s husband, Justin (Mark Coles Smith), is one of the journalists who trains his sights on Gibson as a safer target for frustration than his spouse, and out of a vain hope discrediting Gibson will persuade Lucy to resume chemotherapy.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
6 Feb. 2025
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Privately, former officials who worked for Thao and other city officials have attempted to discredit Webb’s allegations, which have quietly raised eyebrows and skepticism around the town’s political circles for some time.—
Shomik Mukherjee,
The Mercury News,
2 Feb. 2025
Verb
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At the same time, nations are engaging in cross-border efforts to use disinformation and other forms of propaganda to subvert elections, while some technology, media, and political leaders aid the spread of lies and conspiracy theories.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Jan. 2025
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To subvert whiteness with Blackness as a cultural and psychological lingua franca cannot possibly undo the wounds that molded modern Blackness in the first place, a diasporic concern that places even the most joyous liberation and self-expression in an especially morose context.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
27 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The publication of The American Black Chamber on June 1, 1931, as well as three preceding articles in the Saturday Evening Post, embarrassed the Japanese.—
Peter Zablocki,
Smithsonian Magazine,
4 Feb. 2025
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The 2013 incident embarrassed New Orleans, which wanted to show off how well the city had bounced back by hosting the big game for the first time since Hurricane Katrina.—
Eric Jackson,
Sportico.com,
3 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near degrade
Cite this Entry
“Degrade.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/degrade. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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