as in to degrade
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 subvert
What followed mirrors efforts to subvert the 2020 election with the partisan roles reversed and election meddling focused on statewide offices instead of the presidential race.
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Clara Hendrickson, Detroit Free Press, 4 Dec. 2024
In an effort to subvert a tabloid breaking the story, Van Der Beek shared his diagnosis on social media.
—Caroline Thayer, Fox News, 1 Dec. 2024
Dozens of associates face state charges tied to efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election after Trump lost, but presidential pardon powers only extend to federal crimes.
—Ella Lee, The Hill, 29 Nov. 2024
Christmas entertainment can sometimes be criticized for being treacly and cliché, but The Year Without a Santa Claus subverts those stereotypes with its zany characters, who act in the strange, contradictory ways, like real people do.
—Victoria Edel, People.com, 10 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for subvert 
Clara Hendrickson, Detroit Free Press, 4 Dec. 2024
In an effort to subvert a tabloid breaking the story, Van Der Beek shared his diagnosis on social media.
—Caroline Thayer, Fox News, 1 Dec. 2024
Dozens of associates face state charges tied to efforts to subvert the 2020 presidential election after Trump lost, but presidential pardon powers only extend to federal crimes.
—Ella Lee, The Hill, 29 Nov. 2024
Christmas entertainment can sometimes be criticized for being treacly and cliché, but The Year Without a Santa Claus subverts those stereotypes with its zany characters, who act in the strange, contradictory ways, like real people do.
—Victoria Edel, People.com, 10 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for subvert
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subvert
Verb
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This air bag issue is separate from the largest automotive recall in history, that of 67 million Takata air bag inflators, whose metal canisters degrade with age, heat and humidity, and can, without warning, become bombs.David Shepardson, Detroit Free Press, 19 Dec. 2024
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In addition, heat from combustion causes some pesticides to degrade into harmful gases such as hydrogen cyanide.Paige St. John, Los Angeles Times, 19 Dec. 2024
Verb
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An easy monetary policy typically weakens a country’s currency, making exports cheaper and potentially supports growth in the face of tariffs.Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 23 Dec. 2024
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This rare condition occurs when the ligaments holding the lower ribs in place weaken, allowing the ribs to move out of position and causing pain.Lindsay Curtis, Health, 22 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Orlok wants to feed on the warm blood of the living and to corrupt the innocent—nothing more.Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 29 Dec. 2024
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In that sense, Babygirl is a case study in how power corrupts not only those who have it, but those who crave it.Louis Staples, Rolling Stone, 23 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Spreading rapidly due to strong winds, the South Fork Fire destroyed more than 1,000 structures.Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 28 Dec. 2024
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Meanwhile, almost 20 American naval vessels and more than 300 airplanes were destroyed or damaged.David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Jeff grants this request, and Gabe humiliates himself on national television for fifteen unbearable seconds.Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 13 Nov. 2024
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To see the reigning English champions humiliated and humbled in such a manner is a very rare event.Tim Spiers, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024
Verb
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After the second-longest bout of hyperinflation on record anywhere (with 45 months in hyperinflationary conditions between 2017 and 2021), the government is preparing to further debase the bolivar, the nation’s ailing currency.Moisés Naím, Foreign Affairs, 28 Sep. 2021
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By that time – perhaps only a decade from now, perhaps longer – the dollar may have been debased so badly that one bitcoin might be priced at $1 trillion or more.Dave Birnbaum, Forbes, 24 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Dexter’s first kill, initiated by the nurse poisoning Harry when he’s hospitalized after a heart attack, is intercut with Deb’s high school volleyball game.Alison Herman, Variety, 14 Dec. 2024
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Moscow’s disastrous war in Afghanistan in the 1980s poisoned its relations with the Muslim world, and even contributed to the collapse of the Soviet state.Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Dec. 2024
Verb
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This dilutes the experience for performers and audiences alike, reducing artists to brief sets that prevent meaningful audience connections.Andrew Bird, Baltimore Sun, 28 Dec. 2024
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Late adoption can dilute business value, increase IT costs and increase the risk.Akhilesh Tripathi, Forbes, 26 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near subvert
Cite this Entry
“Subvert.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subvert. Accessed 5 Jan. 2025.
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