denigrate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to speak damagingly of; criticize in a derogatory manner; sully; defame.
to denigrate someone's character.
-
to treat or represent as lacking in value or importance; belittle; disparage.
to denigrate someone's contributions to a project.
-
Archaic. to make black; darken.
rain clouds denigrating the sky.
verb
-
(tr) to belittle or disparage the character of; defame
-
a rare word for blacken
Related Words
See decry.
Other Word Forms
- denigration noun
- denigrative adjective
- denigrator noun
- denigratory adjective
- self-denigrating adjective
Etymology
Origin of denigrate
First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin dēnigrātus (past participle of dēnigrāre “to blacken”), equivalent to dē- de- + nigr(āre) “to make black” + -ātus -ate 1
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.
Altman’s November 2019 email also told the board that Dario agreed “not to denigrate projects he doesn’t believe in that others want to bet on.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026
After a week of hearing various US officials denigrate Europe, its leaders and its regulations at Davos, ECB chief Christine Lagarde said Friday that the harsh words could be just what the continent needed.
From Barron's • Jan. 23, 2026
Films are poignant and important, no matter how much the institutions designed to award them have come to denigrate them.
From Salon • Jan. 13, 2026
The panel found Mr Lawler was entitled to hold his own beliefs, but the newsletters were "not just advancing strongly held opinions" but were "attacks" on positions that Mr Lawler "sought to denigrate".
From BBC • Dec. 17, 2025
Inventors thereby have a financial incentive to denigrate or ignore previous work.
From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond
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.
