cheapen
Americanverb (used with object)
-
cheapens,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cheapened,
past participle, past
-
cheapening
present participle
-
to make cheap or cheaper.
-
to lower in esteem; bring into contempt.
Constant swearing cheapened him.
-
to decrease the quality or beauty of; make inferior or vulgar.
She cheapened the dress by adding a fringe to it.
-
Archaic. to bargain for.
verb (used without object)
-
cheapens,
present (3rd person singular)
-
cheapened,
past participle, past
-
cheapening
present participle
verb
-
to make or become lower in reputation, quality, etc; degrade or be degraded
-
to make or become cheap or cheaper
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
cheapensimple
-
cheapenssimple
-
have cheapenedperfect
-
has cheapenedperfect
-
am cheapeningprogressive
-
are cheapeningprogressive
-
is cheapeningprogressive
-
have been cheapeningperfect progressive
-
has been cheapeningperfect progressive
Past
-
cheapenedsimple
-
had cheapenedperfect
-
was cheapeningprogressive
-
were cheapeningprogressive
-
had been cheapeningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of cheapen
1555–65; cheap + -en 1; replacing Middle English chepen (> obsolete English cheap (v.)) to price, bargain, Old English cēapian to bargain, trade, buy; cognate with Old Norse kaupa, Gothic kaupōn, German kaufen
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:
A deterioration in the U.S. deficit is also causing Treasurys to cheapen.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
Both seasons of the show demonstrate that only the wealthy can afford to indulge in extreme emotional displays or cheapen honest ones.
From Salon ● Apr. 23, 2026
The Japanese government doesn’t want its currency to cheapen dramatically; that makes it more expensive for Japanese citizens to buy what they need.
From Barron's ● Jan. 26, 2026
A literary biography needn’t be an artful accretion of facts, nor should it traffic in salacious gossip and cheapen the subject at hand.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2025
Finally he spoke the three simple words that no amount of bad art or bad faith can ever quite cheapen.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
“Chill on the AI it cheapens the brand,” one wrote on Instagram.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 5, 2026
It “demeans and cheapens our politics. It only serves to further discourage good, big-hearted people from wanting to get involved at all. America, our parents taught us better than that.”
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2024
"If a university is willing to look the other way and not hold faculty accountable for engaging in academically dishonest behavior, it cheapens its mission and the value of its education," Ms Fox said.
From BBC ● Dec. 20, 2023
“To get nominated for an Academy Award is a tremendous honor and this cheapens the honor by making one category less than the other.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 27, 2022
It cheapens everything, doesn’t it, if this man thinks we’re only giving him everything we have on us because we may not have any use for it ten minutes from now.
From "They Both Die at the End" by Adam Silvera
As these markets have cheapened, investors may want to look at deeply discounted BDCs and closed-end junk-bond and leveraged-loan funds.
From Barron's ● Mar. 27, 2026
The surge in China’s trade surplus isn’t a byproduct of a cheapened yuan, but despite a relatively stronger currency, he says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
These missives exploded the myths around a man who has for decades been derided as a cynical and unscrupulous opportunist that cheapened Presley’s legacy while enriching himself at his client’s expense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2025
Chinese stocks have cheapened as a result, to a price-to-earnings ratio of 11%, the lowest among major Asian markets.
From Reuters ● Nov. 15, 2023
He despised the trivialization of higher education, the inflated grades and cheapened diplomas, the half education that so often passed as mass education in my generation.
From "Hunger of Memory" by Richard Rodriguez
Far from cheapening the brand, Ferrari’s rabid base of superfans only enhances the brand’s appeal to clients who can afford to pay millions of dollars for a car they will rarely drive.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 10, 2026
This time, we’re seeing the actor’s answer to “The Studio,” only instead of satirizing the industry’s artistically cheapening franchise obsession, it warns of the full extinction of originality by way of ChatGPT.
From Salon ● Mar. 26, 2026
"The way they do their buffet and their salad bar, it feels like they are cheapening on their quality and have lower standards...They're giving away so much food and you're like 'How?'"
From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2025
On the energy front, motor fuel may be cheapening, but fuel and electricity for home use are still pricey.
From Slate ● Jun. 17, 2024
He spoke alone to those who understand, Not cheapening words within the public mart, Living withdrawn, a high and humble heart, Creating loveliness for his loved land.
From Hospital Sketches by Robert Swain Peabody
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.
