debase en · VERB
Pronunciation
- /dɪˈbeɪs/ (UK)
- (Southern-England) audio
Etymology
From de- + base, from Old French bas, from Latin bassus. Cognate with Spanish debajo (“under, beneath, below”). Compare abase.
Meanings
-
(transitive) To lower in character, quality, or value; to degrade.
And just as history will decide whether the leaders of today's world employed the atom to destroy the world or rebuild it for mankind's benefit, so will history decide whether today's broadcasters employed their powerful voice to enrich the people or to debase them.
1961 May 9, Newton N. Minow, Television and the Public Interest:
- (archaic, transitive) To lower in position or rank.
- (transitive) To lower the value of (a currency) by reducing the amount of valuable metal in the coins.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| debased | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| debased | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| debasing | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| debases | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic |
Antonyms
Coordinates
Deriveds
debasingly · debasement · undebased · debasedness · debaser · debased
Hypernyms
Hyponyms
Synonyms
devalue · degrade · whittle down to size · adulter · cut down to size · sink · debase · relegate · abase · trim down to size · downgrade · knock down to size · sophisticate · bring down to size · humble · demean · devaluate · avile · adulter · corrupt · reduce · demean · degrade · bastardize · disgrace · balderdash · dash · slur · discredit · embase · put someone in their place · degrade · alloy · depreciate · elevate · disparage · humiliate · give a bad name · dishonour · adulterize · debauch · dilute · abase · debase · dirty · embase · abase · vitiate · humble · defame · demote · depress · alloy · adulterate · cut down to size · abase · embase · adulterate · demote · debauch
Translations (41)
mi whakatautauwhea (lower in character, etc) · de verderben (lower in character, etc) · ota بوزمق (lower in character, etc) · ro degrada (lower in character, etc) · ga truailligh (lower in character, etc) · eo malaltigi (lower in character, etc) · de entwürdigen (lower in character, etc) · cs ponížit (lower in character, etc) · az alçaltmaq (lower in character, etc) · bg унижавам (lower in character, etc) · rgn adulterêr (lower in character, etc) · it avvilire (lower in character, etc) · de erniedrigen (lower in character, etc) · hy ստորացնել (lower in character, etc) · nb nedverdige (lower in character, etc) · el υποτιμώ (lower in character, etc) · el υποβαθμίζω (lower in character, etc) · cmn 貶低 /贬低 (lower in character, etc) · ru унижать (lower in character, etc) · pt rebaixar (lower in character, etc) · hu fitymál (lower in character, etc) · hu lefitymál (lower in character, etc) · de mindern (lower in character, etc) · el εξευτελίζω (lower in character, etc) · de herabsetzen (lower in character, etc) · hu lealacsonyít (lower in character, etc) · bg понижавам (lower in character, etc) · ba кәмһетеү (lower in character, etc) · de verschlechtern (lower in character, etc) · cs znehodnotit (lower in character, etc) · ja 変造する (lower in character, etc) · fi heikentää (lower in character, etc) · mi whakatautauhea (lower in character, etc) · fi huonontaa (lower in character, etc) · es viciar (lower in character, etc) · de abwerten (lower in character, etc) · es degradar (lower in character, etc) · fr abâtardir (lower in character, etc) · es envilecer (lower in character, etc) · de herabwürdigen (lower in character, etc) · hu lekicsinyel (lower in character, etc)