deflate

American  

[dih-fleyt] / dɪˈfleɪt /

verb (used with object)

• deflates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• deflated,
  past participle,  past
• deflating
  present participle

1. 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.

2. to depress or reduce (a person or a person's ego, hopes, spirits, etc.); puncture; dash.

   Her rebuff thoroughly deflated me.

3. to reduce (currency, prices, etc.) from an inflated condition; to affect with deflation.

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verb (used without object)

• deflates,
  present (3rd person singular)
• deflated,
  past participle,  past
• deflating
  present participle

1. to become deflated.

deflate British  

/ dɪˈfleɪt /

verb

1. to collapse or cause to collapse through the release of gas

2. (tr) to take away the self-esteem or conceit from

3. economics to cause deflation of (an economy, the money supply, etc)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• deflator
  noun
• self-deflated
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• deflating
  present
• deflated
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• deflate
  simple
• deflates
  simple
• have deflated
  perfect
• has deflated
  perfect
• am deflating
  progressive
• are deflating
  progressive
• is deflating
  progressive
• have been deflating
  perfect progressive
• has been deflating
  perfect progressive

Past

• deflated
  simple
• had deflated
  perfect
• was deflating
  progressive
• were deflating
  progressive
• had been deflating
  perfect progressive

Future

• will deflate
  simple
• will have deflated
  perfect
• will be deflating
  progressive
• will have been deflating
  perfect progressive

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."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

deflate deflates deflated deflating

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

When adults appear in the background, intruding in the hackers’ bedrooms, they deflate the mood with their insensitivity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026

As the capsule splashes down, the parachutes will instantaneously deflate when the risers are severed ... and we'll see the parachutes fall into the ocean.

From Barron's ● Apr. 10, 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

The galaxies would tug on one another, eventually pulling the fabric of space-time together; the balloon would begin to deflate.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife

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

Neuroscientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla have identified a brain pathway that instantly deflates anxiety.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 27, 2024

Connor deflates, his ecstatic grin shrinking at the corners.

From "The Sea in Winter" by Christine Day

“But I’m just finishing up,” Dan protested, now deflated.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

When the skin has collapsed into your palm like a deflated balloon, you lift the box grater and discover an almost implausible amount of ruby pulp underneath it.

From Salon ● Aug. 1, 2026

The subsequent years were some of the worst in market history after the tech bubble deflated.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026

As you can imagine, the England camp was pretty deflated after the heartbreaking semi-final loss.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

My heart deflated faster than a pin in a balloon.

From "Monday's Not Coming" by Tiffany D. Jackson

Hampton would’ve done more if not for deflating injuries that limited him to 10 games.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 24, 2026

Prior to this latest episode, the last time the number of negative-beta stocks peaked was in early 2001, as the dot-com bubble was deflating.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026

The boat was poor quality, overcrowded and "appeared to be deflating upon interception", the prosecutor added.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Then they would promptly sidestep or bet against it, deflating the bubble before it could expand anywhere near the bursting point.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 8, 2026

Her salt- and-pepper hair turned completely gray and her robust figure sprang a slow leak, so that she seemed to be deflating day by day.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

Related Words

• depress
• diminish
• exhaust