deprecate

[ dep-ri-keyt ]
See synonyms for: deprecatedeprecateddeprecating on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),dep·re·cat·ed, dep·re·cat·ing.
  1. to express earnest disapproval of: The physician’s committee moved to deprecate the standard American diet.

  2. to urge reasons against; protest against (a scheme, purpose, etc.).

  1. to depreciate; belittle: How can companies redress the experiences of marginalized team members whose voices are being deprecated in the workplace?

  2. Computers. to cease supporting or recommending the use of (older elements, features, or versions of software): The publisher deprecates products after five years or if more than two more recent versions are available.

  3. Archaic. to pray for deliverance from.

Origin of deprecate

1
First recorded in 1615–25; from Latin dēprecātus “prayed against, warded off” (past participle of dēprecārī ), equivalent to dē- “away from, out of“ + precārī “to pray” + -ātus past participle suffix; see de-, pray, -ate1

synonym study For deprecate

1. See decry.

word story For deprecate

An early and still common sense of deprecate is “to express disapproval of.” In technology and computing, deprecate is very commonly used to describe phasing out or abandoning out-of-date software.
In an evolution still occasionally criticized by a few, deprecate has come to be synonymous with the similar but etymologically unrelated word depreciate in the sense “belittle”: The author modestly deprecated the importance of his work. In compounds with self-, deprecate has almost totally replaced depreciate in modern usage: Her self-deprecating account of her career both amused and charmed the audience.

Other words for deprecate

Other words from deprecate

  • dep·re·cat·ing·ly, adverb
  • dep·re·ca·tion [dep-ri-key-shuhn], /ˌdɛp rɪˈkeɪ ʃən/, noun
  • dep·re·ca·tor, noun
  • half-dep·re·cat·ing, adjective
  • half-dep·re·cat·ing·ly, adverb
  • non·dep·re·cat·ing, adjective
  • non·dep·re·cat·ing·ly, adverb
  • un·dep·re·cat·ing, adjective
  • un·dep·re·cat·ing·ly, adverb

Words that may be confused with deprecate

  • deprecate , depreciate (see word story at the current entry)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use deprecate in a sentence

  • Then as they glanced into the general room again, the trooper looked deprecatingly at his officer.

    Winston of the Prairie | Harold Bindloss
  • And he smiled as he deprecatingly looked up and down my somewhat small and slight figure.

    My Wonderful Visit | Charlie Chaplin
  • "I learned to play jest a little," said Si deprecatingly, and getting very red in the face.

  • "I'm makin' up my hat agen," she said, almost deprecatingly.

    That Lass O' Lowrie's | Frances Hodgson Burnett
  • "It is not you who are too late; it was I who was too early," Millar said deprecatingly.

    The Devil | Joseph O'Brien

British Dictionary definitions for deprecate

deprecate

/ (ˈdɛprɪˌkeɪt) /


verb(tr)
  1. to express disapproval of; protest against

  2. to depreciate (a person, someone's character, etc); belittle

  1. archaic to try to ward off by prayer

Origin of deprecate

1
C17: from Latin dēprecārī to avert, ward off by entreaty, from de- + precārī to pray

confusable For deprecate

Avoid confusion with depreciate

Derived forms of deprecate

  • deprecating, adjective
  • deprecatingly, adverb
  • deprecation, noun
  • deprecative, adjective
  • deprecatively, adverb
  • deprecator, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012