deprive
Americanverb (used with object)
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deprives,
present (3rd person singular)
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deprived,
past participle, past
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depriving
present participle
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to remove or withhold something from the enjoyment or possession of (a person or persons).
to deprive a man of life; to deprive a baby of candy.
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to remove from ecclesiastical office.
verb
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(foll by of) to prevent from possessing or enjoying; dispossess (of)
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archaic to remove from rank or office; depose; demote
Synonym Usage
See strip 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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deprivalnoun
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deprivernoun
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predepriveverb (used with object)
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deprivableadjective
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deprivativeadjective
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nondeprivableadjective
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self-deprivingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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deprivesimple
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deprivessimple
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have deprivedperfect
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has deprivedperfect
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am deprivingprogressive
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are deprivingprogressive
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is deprivingprogressive
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have been deprivingperfect progressive
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has been deprivingperfect progressive
Past
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deprivedsimple
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had deprivedperfect
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was deprivingprogressive
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were deprivingprogressive
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had been deprivingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deprive
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English depriven, from Anglo-French, Old French depriver, from Medieval Latin dēprīvāre, equivalent to Latin dē- de- + prīvāre “to deprive” ( prīv(us) private + -āre infinitive suffix)
Explanation
Deprive means to keep from having. If your little brother gets loud and hyper every time he eats sweets, your parents might deprive him of sugary cereal and candy. Deprive can also mean to take away something that someone already had, or feels they deserve to have, like basic human rights. "A crowd gathered to protest the man's imprisonment for a crime he did not commit; they didn't want to allow the government to deprive him of his freedom." The word comes from the Latin, de", which means "entirely," and privare, which means "release from." Put together, they mean to "entirely release from." In this case, the imprisoned man's freedom is being "entirely released," or taken away, and he'll no longer have it.
Vocabulary lists containing deprive
The Declaration of Independence
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Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
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Freak the Mighty
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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.
See Examples For:
Butts said the measure would deprive the city of an $8-million annual revenue source.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
What did we need him for when we could just buy the Bitcoin ourselves and deprive him of the arbitrage?
From Slate ● Sep. 20, 2026
So while Murrill’s desire to deprive exonerees of money is terrible, Alexander said, her efforts to prevent them from having their names officially cleared are truly reprehensible.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
But he otherwise stuck to his determination to deprive markets of “forward guidance” on future rate moves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
To overwhelm a child of four with choices, to lay on her the burden of making a decision, was to deprive her of the bliss of childhood.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
These disabilities can occur because a stroke deprives parts of the brain of oxygen or causes bleeding that destroys brain cells.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 22, 2026
But I saw, up close, how thoroughly the system deprives people from the lifelines of family connection they need.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026
Cleage gives the women plenty of substance, though her novelistic mode — more telling than showing — deprives her drama of style.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
This particularly deprives eastern parts of the country of rainfall and sees a later start to the northern wet season -- though less chance of tropical cyclones.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
Reacting to the portrait in “a direct, straightforward fashion,” without the benefit of additional knowledge, deprives us of an understanding that is necessary for full appreciation.
From "History of Art, Volume 1" by H.W. Janson
Platt Bridge is one of the most deprived parts of Wigan.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
The findings suggested that cells deprived of Mitch were changing how they distributed and used these lipids, drawing on some of their available fatty resources to support increased energy consumption.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 24, 2026
A federal judge ruled for Asian parents and said their students had been deprived of a “level playing field” in competing for admission.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 19, 2026
He said this restriction "led to the disruption of a number of missions" and deprived Ukraine of its ability to fight Russian jet-powered drones.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
She felt on edge, sleep deprived, and overcaffeinated.
From "Far from the Tree" by Robin Benway
They don’t need to know their father is a deadbeat dad and is depriving them of their college fund.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026
"Change doesn't mean depriving people of their rights," Lula has said.
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
Habba apparently hasn’t yet collected her fee, and this revelation may just end up depriving her of most of it.
From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026
Pitch Nine will be out of action until 2029 at the earliest, depriving Lord's of one of its main TV pitches.
From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026
Like his brother, Pierrot had the knack of depriving his lines of any sense.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
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