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decried

 - 3 dictionary results

de⋅cry

  [di-krahy]
Use decried in a Sentence
–verb (used with object), -cried, -cry⋅ing.
1. to speak disparagingly of; denounce as faulty or worthless; express censure of: She decried the lack of support for the arts in this country.
2. to condemn or depreciate by proclamation, as foreign or obsolete coins.
Origin:
1610–20; < F décrier, OF descrier. See dis- 1 , cry

Related forms:
de⋅cri⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. belittle, disparage, discredit, depreciate, minimize. Decry, denigrate, deprecate, derogate all involve the expression of censure or disapproval. Decry means to express one's vigorous disapproval of or to denounce: to decry all forms of discrimination. Denigrate means to speak damagingly of, to criticize in derogative terms: denigrating his works as trifling and poorly executed. Deprecate implies the expression of earnest, thoughtful disapproval: to deprecate a plan because of possible environmental damage. Derogate means to speak in such a way as to decrease the status, high quality, or good reputation of someone or something, making the person or object seem of less value: Fear of change makes them derogate every proposal put forth.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To decried
de·cry   (dĭ-krī')   
tr.v.   de·cried, de·cry·ing, de·cries

  1. To condemn openly.

  2. To depreciate (currency, for example) by official proclamation or by rumor.


[French décrier, from Old French descrier : des-, de- + crier, to cry; see cry.]
de·cri'er n.
Synonyms: These verbs mean to think, write, or speak of as being of little value or importance. Decry implies open denunciation or condemnation: A staunch materialist, he decries economy.
Disparage often implies the communication of a low opinion by indirection: Many critics disparage psychoanalysis as being a pseudoscience.
To depreciate is to assign a lower than customary value to someone or something: Some musicologists depreciate Liszt's compositions.
Derogate implies a detraction that impairs: People often derogate what they don't understand.
Belittle and minimize mean to make less important, but minimize strongly implies the minimum level: He belittled the child's attempts to draw. She tried to minimize my accomplishment.
To downgrade is to minimize in importance or estimation: Her rival downgraded the painting, calling it decorative but superficial.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

decry 
1617, from Fr. decrier, from O.Fr. descrier "cry out, announce," from de- "down, out" + crier "to cry." In Eng., the sense has been colored by the presumption that de- in this word means "down."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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