cheapen

[ chee-puhn ]

/ ˈtʃi pən /

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See synonyms for: cheapen / cheapened / cheapening on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)

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)

to become cheap or cheaper.

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Origin of cheapen

1555–65; cheap + -en¹; 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

OTHER WORDS FROM cheapen

cheap·en·er, nounun·cheap·ened, adjective

Words nearby cheapen

Ch.B., ChD, Ch.E., cheap, cheap at twice the price, cheapen, cheapie, cheap-jack, cheapo, cheap out, cheap shot

How to use cheapen in a sentence

Luckily, there are several fantastic options out there for an inexpensive pair that doesn’t cheapen the listening experience.
The best budget headphones: Cutting cost doesn’t have to mean ditching features|Billy Cadden|June 29, 2021|Popular-Science
Plus, says Clayton, putting in an Ethernet-wired mesh system can increase your home’s value by 10 to 15 percent—not to mention cheapen the cost of other projects down the line, like security camera systems.
Ethernet and a mesh network will permanently solve your WiFi issues|Whitson Gordon|October 16, 2020|Popular-Science
In 2012, the “Israel-right-or-wrong” crowd continued to cheapen the very serious issue of anti-Semitism.
Top Ten Issues The ADL Ignored|Lara Friedman|December 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Does complaining about political rhetoric cheapen the deaths, or does it give them added meaning?
January 9: 7 Best Moments From Sunday Talk|The Daily Beast Video|January 9, 2011|DAILY BEAST

The first are books that bring added value to the popular, the second cheapen the whole proposition of publishing.
The $5 Million Ghost Story|Celia McGee|October 3, 2009|DAILY BEAST
We came not to any agreement, but did cheapen several parcels, and thence away, promising to send again to them.
Diary of Samuel Pepys, Complete|Samuel Pepys
No, sir; 'tisn' the rule, an' us can't begin to cheapen the fee wi' a man o' your inches.
Wandering Heath|Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
"Girls, you cheapen yourselves by lack of purpose in life," says Rena L. Miner.
How to Succeed|Orison Swett Marden
Good tools facilitate and cheapen cultivation, and increase the yield of crops, Money paid out for such tools is well expended.
Soil Culture|J. H. Walden
He wished to cheapen everything as his own produce had been cheapened.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Volume 69, No. 423, January 1851|Various

British Dictionary definitions for cheapen

cheapen

/ (ˈtʃiːpən) /

verb

to make or become lower in reputation, quality, etc; degrade or be degraded

to make or become cheap or cheaper

Derived forms of cheapen

cheapener, 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

cheapen

Origin of cheapen

OTHER WORDS FROM cheapen

Words nearby cheapen

Words related to cheapen

How to use cheapen in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cheapen

Derived forms of cheapen