deprogram
Americanverb (used with object)
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to free (a convert) from the influence of a religious cult, political indoctrination, etc., by intensive persuasion or reeducation.
-
to retrain, as for the purpose of eliminating or replacing a learned or acquired behavior pattern or habit that is undesirable or unsuitable.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of deprogram
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:
“It takes a lot for someone, once they’ve been indoctrinated, to deprogram them, and that’s a lot of what the story is about,” said Williams.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2022
“We have to kind of deprogram people and help them understand that’s not really the way it works.”
From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2022
It may take you a while to figure this out, but that isn’t uncommon even when someone isn’t attempting to deprogram from the almighty RPM of an appliance.
From Slate ● Sep. 5, 2021
It is hard work to deprogram ourselves of institutionalized language, even for the best of those reporting on abuses in the criminal legal system, even for me at times.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 18, 2020
I deprogram the air filters and open the windows.
From "Everything, Everything" by Nicola Yoon
Seeing my devastation, he concocted a weak compliment--"nice growth formation of the hair"--but I was already woefully deprogramed.
From Time Magazine Archive
Back in July, Stout posted a TikTok where she explains how she essentially deprogrammed herself from far-right ideology, and it went viral—it has over 3 million views.
From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2025
“We are getting deprogrammed right now,” he said with a rueful chuckle.
From Washington Post ● Aug. 23, 2022
“He’s been deprogrammed and he can no longer hide from all that baggage,” says Spellman.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2021
Michael Cohen sounded, more than anything else, like a cult member who had been deprogrammed.
From Salon ● Mar. 1, 2019
Scott never found out that his mother deprogrammed the VCR, cleared its memory and 'Twelved' the clock an hour before he arrived to show her how to use it.
From Terminal Compromise: computer terrorism: when privacy and freedom are the victims: a novel by Winn Schwartau
"Counter-terrorism police and Prevent are excellent at deprogramming children who have been caught into ideological movements," she told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
Abandoning a cult is relatively easy compared to unplugging from a hive; although deprogramming can be an arduous process, a hive mind hollows out everything but our skins.
From Salon ● Dec. 29, 2025
This is the beginning of intense deprogramming, and I just hope to God the people that help her along the way are actually there for the right reasons.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 16, 2021
For Korver, that confidence base includes deprogramming some of the ways women are socialized.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 21, 2021
He agreed to deprogramming sessions, determined to prove to his family—and to himself—that he was in his right mind.
From Slate ● Jun. 1, 2021
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