demoralize
Americanverb (used with object)
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to deprive (a person or persons) of spirit, courage, discipline, etc.; destroy the morale of.
The continuous barrage demoralized the infantry.
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to throw (a person) into disorder or confusion; bewilder.
We were so demoralized by that one wrong turn that we were lost for hours.
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to corrupt or undermine the morals of.
verb
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to undermine the morale of; dishearten
he was demoralized by his defeat
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to debase morally; corrupt
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to throw into confusion
Other Word Forms
- demoralization noun
- demoralizer noun
- demoralizingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of demoralize
From the French word démoraliser, dating back to 1785–95. See de-, moral, -ize
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.
Churchill wrote “My Early Life” for a generation demoralized by World War I and determined to break with its past.
For this reason, according to the researchers, investors who are fans of a losing team will be more demoralized than the winning team’s fans will be exuberant.
From MarketWatch
I tried to push Russell out of my mind, but my thoughts slid about, half focused on the demoralizing drama as George fell into poverty, half drifting to my own predicament.
From Literature
But he was dismayed by the abrupt layoffs in April that left FDA staff demoralized, he said, with some crying in the hallways.
The July cuts “demoralized” the office, according to an attorney whose position was spared in the cuts but has since left the agency.
From Barron's
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.
