Degrade

How to spell degrade

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce degrade

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does degrade mean?

1. verbTo reduce someone or something in quality, status, or dignity.
2. verbTo break down or decompose into simpler or weaker components.

Degrade in a sentence

• Constant criticism can degrade a worker's confidence over time.

• Sunlight will slowly degrade the plastic into smaller fragments.

• Cheap fillers degrade the overall quality of the product.

• Certain bacteria degrade oil spills into harmless compounds.

Where does degrade come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin gradus, meaning a 'step' or a 'stage', the same root that gives us 'grade', 'gradual', and 'progress'. Church Latin formed degradare by adding the prefix de-, meaning 'down', so the literal sense was to lower someone by a step, that is, to strip them of rank or office. English took the word in the 1400s through the Old French degrader, first using it for the formal demotion of a knight or clergyman from their position. Over time the meaning widened from removing a person's rank to lowering anyone's dignity or self-respect, and later still to reducing the quality or strength of a material or substance. Remembering that the core is plain 'grade' (a step or rank) makes the spelling straightforward: it is simply 'de' plus 'grade', with no hidden letters.

How the word is built

• de- (down)
• grade (step/rank, from Latin gradus 'step')
• (verb)