depreciate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to reduce the purchasing value of (money).
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to lessen the value or price of.
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to claim depreciation on (a property) for tax purposes.
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to represent as of little value or merit; belittle.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to reduce or decline in value or price
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(tr) to lessen the value of by derision, criticism, etc; disparage
Commonly Confused
See deprecate
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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depreciatornoun
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predepreciateverb
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redepreciateverb
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underdepreciateverb (used with object)
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depreciatoryadjective
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nondepreciatingadjective
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undepreciatedadjective
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depreciatinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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depreciatesimple
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depreciatessimple
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have depreciatedperfect
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has depreciatedperfect
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am depreciatingprogressive
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are depreciatingprogressive
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is depreciatingprogressive
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have been depreciatingperfect progressive
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has been depreciatingperfect progressive
Past
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depreciatedsimple
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had depreciatedperfect
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was depreciatingprogressive
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were depreciatingprogressive
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had been depreciatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of depreciate
First recorded in 1640–50; from Late Latin dēpretiātus “undervalued” (past participle of dēpretiāre; in Medieval Latin spelling dēpreciāre ), equivalent to Latin dē- “away from, out of” + preti(um) “price” + -ātus past participle suffix; see de-, price, -ate 1
Explanation
Something depreciates when it loses value. If you bought shares of a company for $10 each a year ago and now they’re worth $1 each, guess what: they have depreciated. One of the most frustrating things about buying a car is the way it loses value. As soon as you drive it off the lot, your new car has already depreciated by several thousand dollars. Though usually used like this as a financial term, depreciate can also be used as the similar-sounding but unrelated word deprecate meaning "to belittle, lower in esteem." Your teachers should not depreciate you just because you don't always know the answers to their questions!
Vocabulary lists containing depreciate
"The Gift of the Magi" by O. Henry
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"The Gift of the Magi"
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How Low Can You Go? Synonyms for "Downward"
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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:
The amount actually recovered in cases like this often falls well short of the amount embezzled - especially if the money has been spent on consumables, holidays, and luxury goods that depreciate.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
Car companies will often offer incentives to help their trade-in customers offset negative equity, with some brands tending to offer more because their cars depreciate faster.
From MarketWatch ● Apr. 28, 2026
The cost of maintaining military superiority is rising as technological innovation accelerates, even as traditional military capital like tanks, ships, and aircraft become more vulnerable and depreciate faster.
From Barron's ● Apr. 27, 2026
Electric vehicles depreciate in value faster than traditional cars, meaning buyers can get a good deal on a used EV that hasn’t been on the road for long.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 17, 2026
Nor do I wish to depreciate chess and draughts, nor even halma, the poor relation of draughts and chess, nor dominoes, which we all love.
From Wings and the Child or, the Building of Magic Cities by Nesbit, E. (Edith)
“If it doesn’t pan out, we have just plunked down a lot of money on the table that depreciates really quickly. And the clock is ticking.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 30, 2025
As the car gets older, its value depreciates — leading to borrowers paying more than the market value of their vehicle.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 23, 2025
Amounts owed to boxers do not gain interest or adjust for inflation once a fighter is eligible at age 50, meaning the value depreciates over time.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 28, 2023
A replacement battery for a Tesla Model 3 can cost up to $20,000, for a vehicle that retails at around $43,000 but depreciates quickly over time.
From Reuters ● Mar. 20, 2023
Confederate money still depreciates, in spite of the funding act.
From A Rebel War Clerk's Diary at the Confederate States Capital by Jones, John Beauchamp
This means that if a homeowner needs a new roof, the insurer only covers the depreciated value of the roof rather than the entire replacement cost.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 26, 2026
Having sat unused in a police yard for over three years, it will have depreciated sharply - perhaps to less than half its original price.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
Exporters got a boost from the yen, which depreciated 7.8% against the dollar in April, making Japanese goods cheaper and more competitive overseas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
That annual return will continue over the decades while slowly decreasing each year as the assets are depreciated, Ellis said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2026
Continental money had so depreciated that forty dollars were scarcely equal in value to one silver dollar.
From Famous American Statesmen by Bolton, Sarah Knowles
If the tax turns these high-priced apartments into depreciating assets, prices of smaller apartments will have to rise to make up for it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
However, some analysts think this will likely have the opposite effect of that intended as investors seek to protect themselves from the inflationary impact of a depreciating rupee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
The most valuable asset you have now is time — and that is a depreciating asset for all of us.
From MarketWatch ● Feb. 19, 2026
The current wave of protests began after shopkeepers in Tehran went on strike over the rising cost of living and the depreciating value of the currency.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2026
A flush of crimson crept modestly to her cheeks, and she made a depreciating moue.”
From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
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.
