demoralize
to deprive (a person or persons) of spirit, courage, discipline, etc.; destroy the morale of: The continuous barrage demoralized the infantry.
to throw (a person) into disorder or confusion; bewilder: We were so demoralized by that one wrong turn that we were lost for hours.
to corrupt or undermine the morals of.
Origin of demoralize
1- Also especially British, de·mor·al·ise .
Other words from demoralize
- de·mor·al·i·za·tion, noun
- de·mor·al·iz·er, noun
- de·mor·al·iz·ing·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use demoralize in a sentence
China’s neighbors are not devastated and demoralized from the events of a cataclysmic war as were the countries surrounding the Soviet Union in 1946 and 1947.
Defeating today’s top threats requires rethinking our idea of national security | Melvyn Leffler | January 26, 2021 | Washington PostThey know this is a rotten deal and they are demoralized, running faster and faster with no hope of catching up.
A crisis in leadership had the Taliban demoralized and divided.
Afghan Taliban Say they Won Big with Bergdahl Swap | Sami Yousafzai | June 2, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTMotivating demoralized doctors is something that Dr. Pamela Wible, a family physician in Oregon, has some experience with.
The Health-Care System Is So Broken, It’s Time for Doctors to Strike | Daniela Drake | April 29, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTUkrainian troops are completely demoralized—there is no resistance.
But their supply lines were too long, and their army too small, exhausted, and demoralized to achieve its objectives.
A Noble Failure: Woodrow Wilson’s Presidency Considered | Michael Kazin | September 8, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd it is too true that ages of subjugation have demoralized, to a fearful extent, the Italian People.
Glances at Europe | Horace GreeleyUntil then Anabel clung to her friend, and so did young Colton, who was far more demoralized than his wife.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonShe had found herself in a milieu that demoralized her; her mind had become like "the dyer's hand, subdued to what it worked in."
Marriage la mode | Mrs. Humphry WardMorgan's men charged the scouting party, sending them through the village back to the main body in a very demoralized condition.
Tom, thoroughly demoralized, was already sitting in the bottom of the boat, between the general's knees.
British Dictionary definitions for demoralize
demoralise
/ (dɪˈmɒrəˌlaɪz) /
to undermine the morale of; dishearten: he was demoralized by his defeat
to debase morally; corrupt
to throw into confusion
Derived forms of demoralize
- demoralization or demoralisation, noun
- demoralizer or demoraliser, 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
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