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degraded

 - 6 dictionary results

de⋅grad⋅ed

[di-grey-did]
–adjective
1. reduced in rank, position, reputation, etc.: He felt degraded by the trivial tasks assigned to him.
2. reduced in quality or value; debased; vulgarized: the degraded level of the modern novel.

Origin:
1400–50; late ME; see degrade, -ed 2


de⋅grad⋅ed⋅ly, adverb
de⋅grad⋅ed⋅ness, noun

de⋅grade

[di-greyd or, for 3, dee-greyd] verb, -grad⋅ed, -grad⋅ing.
–verb (used with object)
1. to lower in dignity or estimation; bring into contempt: He felt they were degrading him by making him report to the supervisor.
2. to lower in character or quality; debase.
3. to reduce (someone) to a lower rank, degree, etc.; deprive of office, rank, status, or title, esp. as a punishment: degraded from director to assistant director.
4. to reduce in amount, strength, intensity, etc.
5. Physical Geography. to wear down by erosion, as hills. Compare aggrade.
6. Chemistry. to break down (a compound, esp. an organic hydrocarbon).
–verb (used without object)
7. to become degraded; weaken or worsen; deteriorate.
8. Chemistry. (esp. of an organic hydrocarbon compound) to break down or decompose.

Origin:
1275–1325; ME degraden < LL dēgradāre, equiv. to L dē- de- + grad(us) grade + -āre inf. suffix


de⋅grad⋅er, noun


1. disgrace, dishonor, discredit. See humble. 2. abase, vitiate. 3. demote, depose, downgrade, lower, cashier, break.


1, 2. exalt. 3. promote.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To degraded
de·grade   (dĭ-grād')   
v.   de·grad·ed, de·grad·ing, de·grades

v.   tr.
  1. To reduce in grade, rank, or status; demote.

  2. To lower in dignity; dishonor or disgrace: a scandal that degraded the participants.

  3. To lower in moral or intellectual character; debase.

  4. To reduce in worth or value: degrade a currency.

  5. To impair in physical structure or function.

  6. Geology To lower or wear by erosion or weathering.

  7. To cause (an organic compound) to undergo degradation.

v.   intr.
  1. To fall below a normal state; deteriorate.

  2. To undergo degradation; decompose: a chemical that degrades rapidly.


[Middle English degraden, from Old French degrader, from Late Latin dēgradāre : Latin dē-, de- + Latin gradus, step; see ghredh- in Indo-European roots.]
de·grad'er n.
Synonyms: These verbs mean to deprive of self-esteem or self-worth. Degrade implies reduction to a state of shame or disgrace: "If I pitied you for crying ... you should spurn such pity.... Rise, and don't degrade yourself into an abject reptile!" (Emily Brontë).
Abase refers principally to loss of rank or prestige: "Meg pardoned him, and Mrs. March's grave face relaxed . . . when she heard him declare that he would ... abase himself like a worm before the injured damsel" (Louisa May Alcott).
Debase implies reduction in quality or value: "debasing the moral currency" (George Eliot).
Demean suggests lowering in social position: "It puts him where he can make the advances without demeaning himself" (William Dean Howells).
Humble can refer to lowering in rank or, more often, to reducing in pride: dreamed of humbling his opponent.
To humiliate is to subject to loss of self-respect or dignity: a defeat that humiliated both army and nation. See Also Synonyms at demote.
de·grad·ed   (dĭ-grā'dĭd)   
adj.  
  1. Reduced in rank, dignity, or esteem.

  2. Having been corrupted or depraved.

  3. Having been reduced in quality or value.

de·grad'ed·ly adv., de·grad'ed·ness n.
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

degrade 
c.1325, from O.Fr. degrader (12c.), from des- "down" + L. gradus "step" (see grade).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: de·grade
Pronunciation: di-'grAd
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Forms: de·grad·ed; de·grad·ing
: to reduce the complexity of (a chemical compound) by splitting off one or more groups or larger components : DECOMPOSE degraded by the action of some bacteria> degrade intransitive senses
: to undergo chemical degradation
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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