deign
verb (used without object)
to think it appropriate to or in accordance with one's dignity; condescend.
deigning
-
present participleof deign.present participle
A verb form that is used in progressive verb constructions and may also function as a modifier or a gerund.
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.
The love of ambiguity can feel somewhat coy—Ms. Tokarczuk gestures toward the existence of occult mysteries without deigning to fully portray them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 28, 2025
Before deigning to unveil his characters’ undeveloped souls, Bergman shows us the variety of masks they have been taught to adopt.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2021
Those abundant trees – and of all the creatures, deigning somehow to glance at me and the dogs with a corner-of-the-eye curiosity, though, like the cuckoo, they never quite show their eyes, their faces.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 13, 2020
The “communications” office specializes in stonewalling, often not even deigning to issue a “no comment.”
From Washington Post ● Jan. 2, 2019
She was the queen of the Hollows, and here she was deigning to waste a few of her precious words on me, a kid from Valedale?
From "Burning Blue" by Paul Griffin
