abase

[ uh-beys ]
See synonyms for abase on Thesaurus.com
verb (used with object),a·based, a·bas·ing.
  1. to reduce or lower, as in rank, office, reputation, or estimation; humble; degrade.

  2. Archaic. to lower; put or bring down: He abased his head.

Origin of abase

1
First recorded in 1470–80; a-5 + base2; replacing late Middle English abassen, equivalent to a-5 + bas base2; replacing Middle English abaissen, abe(i)sen, from Anglo-French abesser, abaisser, Old French abaissier, equivalent to a- a-5 + -baissier, from (unattested) Vulgar Latin bassiare, verbal derivative of Late Latin bassus; see base2

Other words for abase

Other words from abase

  • a·base·ment, noun
  • a·bas·er, noun
  • un·a·bas·ing, adjective

Words Nearby abase

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

How to use abase in a sentence

  • I knew she would treat me with the same indifference, and only feel a wondering contempt that I should so abase myself.

    The Making of a Saint | William Somerset Maugham
  • Viewed from afar, the town seemed to abase itself in the presence of the architectural preminence of that monarch of buildings.

    Under the Rose | Frederic Stewart Isham
  • He had a foolish impulse to tear it down and to abase himself with a plea for pardon before the silent beast behind the bars.

    Kings in Exile | Sir Charles George Douglas Roberts
  • Slavery, for example, is abase thing; but a servile mind in a free man is contemptible.

    The Aesthetical Essays | Friedrich Schiller
  • Violent language can no longer either exalt or abase any one.

British Dictionary definitions for abase

abase

/ (əˈbeɪs) /


verb(tr)
  1. to humble or belittle (oneself, etc)

  2. to lower or reduce, as in rank or estimation

Origin of abase

1
C15: abessen, from Old French abaissier to make low. See base ²

Derived forms of abase

  • abasement, 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