degraded

American  

[dih-grey-did] / dɪˈgreɪ dɪd /

adjective

1. reduced in rank, position, reputation, etc..

   He felt degraded by the trivial tasks assigned to him.

2. reduced in quality or value; debased; vulgarized.

   the degraded level of the modern novel.

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Other Word Forms

• degradedly adverb
• degradedness noun
• undegraded adjective

Etymology

Origin of degraded

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English; degrade, -ed ²

Example Sentences

As a result, proteins are not properly degraded, which can lead to the death of nerve cells.

From Science Daily • Mar. 26, 2026

The top intelligence official in the US said on Wednesday that the Iranian regime was "intact" but "largely degraded".

From BBC • Mar. 18, 2026

But Iranian energy assets have not been degraded so far and targeting the island would be "a very risky move", Farzin Nadimi, senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told AFP.

From Barron's • Mar. 11, 2026

It underscores how much last June’s attack had degraded Iran’s capacity to compete in the skies or mount a major retaliatory response.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 1, 2026

Far from being modern breadbaskets, they include areas ranking today as somewhat dry or ecologically degraded: Iraq and Iran, Mexico, the Andes, parts of China, and Africa’s Sahel zone.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond