degraded
Americanadjective
-
reduced in rank, position, reputation, etc..
He felt degraded by the trivial tasks assigned to him.
-
reduced in quality or value; debased; vulgarized.
the degraded level of the modern novel.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of degraded
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English; see origin at degrade, -ed 2
Vocabulary lists containing degraded
"The Declaration of Sentiments" (1848)
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"Ellen West" by Frank Bidart
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
But the majority - 86% - are in a degraded condition, meaning they emit rather than store carbon.
From BBC • May 15, 2026
They also observed that biological materials formed a continuum ranging from well preserved to heavily degraded.
From Science Daily • May 12, 2026
In Shakespeare’s “Henry VI, Part 1,” the brave nobleman Talbot sneers at any knight who is “quite degraded, like a hedge-born swain.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 21, 2026
"The substantial amount of time that passed between her death and the discovery meant that crucial evidence had degraded or disappeared."
From Barron's • Apr. 20, 2026
The two children were on the sofa, their sobs having degraded into tearful whimpers.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
