deflate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to release the air or gas from (something inflated, as a balloon).
They deflated the tires slightly to allow the truck to drive under the overpass.
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to depress or reduce (a person or a person's ego, hopes, spirits, etc.); puncture; dash.
Her rebuff thoroughly deflated me.
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to reduce (currency, prices, etc.) from an inflated condition; to affect with deflation.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to collapse or cause to collapse through the release of gas
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(tr) to take away the self-esteem or conceit from
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economics to cause deflation of (an economy, the money supply, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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deflatesimple
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deflatessimple
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have deflatedperfect
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has deflatedperfect
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am deflatingprogressive
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are deflatingprogressive
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is deflatingprogressive
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have been deflatingperfect progressive
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has been deflatingperfect progressive
Past
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deflatedsimple
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had deflatedperfect
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was deflatingprogressive
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were deflatingprogressive
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had been deflatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of deflate
1890–95; < Latin dēflātus blown off, away (past participle of dēflāre ), equivalent to dē- de- + fl ( āre ) to blow + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
To deflate is to let the air out of something. If you deflate the tires on your brother's bike, he won't be able to ride it until he gets them pumped up again. You can deflate anything that's full of air or another gas: an air mattress, an inflatable sled, a helium balloon, or the tires on your car. When something, like a hot air balloon, empties of air, you can also say it deflates. Figuratively, a person can also deflate when they are suddenly drained of self-assurance or cheer: "Hearing him criticize me in front of the class made me deflate."
Vocabulary lists containing deflate
Fish in a Tree
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Everything, Everything
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Night of the Spadefoot Toads
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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:
Sinking an early birdie on the fifth got the crowd going but starting the back half with bogeys on 10 and 12 threatened to deflate the mood.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
It would deflate the exercise without a vote, an act of omission rather than a fight.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026
The longer it takes for supply to return, the longer it will take oil prices to deflate from current levels.
From Barron's ● Mar. 24, 2026
“The great hurt and fear for folks that steward the farmworker movement now is that this news will deflate the struggle that is so essential and is so hard,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
For a second his fury seemed to deflate, and he felt as if she were making fun of him, but a wave of blood immediately rushed to his brain.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
If the AI bubble ever deflates, these energy companies with no revenue have the farthest to fall and little in the way of a cushion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2025
It deconstructs the artifice of a rock show, making The 1975 seem more human - but equally, it deflates the excitement of watching a band in full flow.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2025
But I think that greatly deflates the more potent message that Jonze was trying to deliver.
From Slate ● Apr. 11, 2025
Domingo didn’t plan how to act that scene, but running smack into the harsh reality of the system, the actor visibly deflates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 6, 2025
This unexpected piece of information deflates him, confuses him.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
The subsequent years were some of the worst in market history after the tech bubble deflated.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
Her father said: "I think, towards the end, she was demotivated. She didn't let herself go, or anything like that. She was demotivated or deflated."
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
When he took control, English cricket was completely deflated - one win in 17 Tests and drained by Covid restrictions.
From BBC ● Jun. 29, 2026
Hilton responded with a quip that quickly deflated the attack.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2026
The engine man sinks to the floor like a deflated balloon.
From "Without Refuge" by Jane Mitchell
The boat was poor quality, overcrowded and "appeared to be deflating upon interception", the prosecutor added.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
The Dodgers suffered a deflating 9-3 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium on Friday to start their final series before the All-Star break.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2026
Customs and Border Protection by roughly 32%, deflating its higher tariff obligations, the 2022 suit alleged.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 26, 2026
The move had an “overwhelming deflating effect on morale,” he said.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2026
“Oh,” Juanita said, her ego deflating like a tire.
From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall
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.
