deflate

[dih-fleyt]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR deflate ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), de·flat·ed, de·flat·ing.

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.

to depress or reduce (a person or a person's ego, hopes, spirits, etc.); puncture; dash: Her rebuff thoroughly deflated me.

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

verb (used without object), de·flat·ed, de·flat·ing.

to become deflated.

Origin of deflate

1890–95; < Latin dēflātus blown off, away (past participle of dēflāre), equivalent to dē- de- + fl(āre) to blow + -ātus -ate¹

Related formsde·fla·tor, nounself-de·flat·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for deflating

depress, exhaust, diminish, disconcert, mortify, collapse, void, squash, devalue, decrease, depreciate, puncture, shrink, empty, flatten, dash, debunk, humble, chasten, dispirit

Examples from the Web for deflating

Contemporary Examples of deflating

The Germans were forced into a pocket, the shape of a deflating balloon.
The Deadly Trap Behind D-Day’s Beaches
Clive Irving
June 5, 2014
Sales would skyrocket with legalization, but prices would plummet, deflating the overall market value.
Why Legalizing Marijuana on Election Day Might Not Be a Good Idea
Tony Doukopil
October 29, 2012
Instead, the deflating moment came when 36–1 long shot Birdstone chased down the frontrunning Smarty Jones on the home stretch.
Scratching I’ll Have Another Lifts a Cloud of Suspicion off the Triple Crown
Dan Packel
June 9, 2012
But talk of millions and billions is deflating to voters who gave small amounts to their favorite candidates.
The Race for 2012's Billions
Peter H. Stone
March 17, 2011
He may not inspire warmth or elation; in fact, the sight and sound of him is vaguely depressing, and deflating.
New York's Insane Political Circus
Tunku Varadarajan
October 18, 2010

Historical Examples of deflating

Her gas escaped to mix with air, and the air of her rent balloonette poured into her deflating gas-chambers.
The War in the Air
Herbert George Wells
The best filled paunches cannot resist them; deflating little by little, they make the heaviest light.
The Legend of Ulenspiegel, Vol. II (of 2)
Charles de Coster

British Dictionary definitions for deflating

deflate

verb

to collapse or cause to collapse through the release of gas

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

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

Derived Formsdeflator, noun

Word Origin for deflate

C19: from de- + (in) flate

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

Word Origin and History for deflating

deflate

1891, in reference to balloons, coinage based on inflate. Latin deflare meant "to blow away," but in the modern word the prefix is taken in the sense of "down." Related: Deflated; deflating.