demoralize
Americanverb (used with object)
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demoralizes,
present (3rd person singular)
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demoralized,
past participle, past
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demoralizing
present participle
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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
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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demoralizesimple
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demoralizessimple
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have demoralizedperfect
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has demoralizedperfect
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am demoralizingprogressive
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are demoralizingprogressive
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is demoralizingprogressive
-
have been demoralizingperfect progressive
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has been demoralizingperfect progressive
Past
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demoralizedsimple
-
had demoralizedperfect
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was demoralizingprogressive
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were demoralizingprogressive
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had been demoralizingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of demoralize
From the French word démoraliser, dating back to 1785–95. See de-, moral, -ize
Explanation
If something demoralizes you, it makes you feel bad or hopeless. When your soccer team was trounced by the last-place team in the league, the loss seemed to demoralize everyone, from players to coaches to fans. Demoralize can also mean what it looks like, "to remove the morals of." For example, parents worry that R-rated movies will demoralize their children. In other words, they fear kids will lose their sense of what's right and wrong if they see glamorous actors indulging in bad behavior.
Vocabulary lists containing demoralize
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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
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The Secret Life of Bees
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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:
It also would all but destroy Detroit’s immediate chances, demoralize the clubhouse and likely alienate a fan base desperate to see the Tigers win their first title since 1984.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 10, 2025
He then answered his own question: “It’s as if they only wanted to scare, hurt, and demoralize us.”
From Slate ● Feb. 13, 2025
Others, however, have said that such messaging may have no impact on behavior, or worse, that it may depress and demoralize the public into inaction.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 7, 2024
Dancers and their supporters accuse Star Garden management of pricing drinks and cover fees in bad faith in an effort to deter customers, demoralize dancers and weaken resolve in contract negotiations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2023
They were younger, coarser men who enforced every niggling regulation, whose job was to harass and demoralize us.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
In a world that often demoralizes rural Americans, and Appalachians in particular, it is imperative that we understand the value of our experience.
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2025
“It demoralizes the workforce ... you got substandard classes,” you said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2022
“It demoralizes police officers and that doesn’t do any good for the officers or the community.”
From Washington Times ● Feb. 1, 2022
“It almost demoralizes you playing against that because it’s hard to get a clean look.”
From Washington Post ● Dec. 4, 2019
In his desire to moralize he demoralizes; in his desire to sanctify one item of life, he casts aside, he overlooks, forgets, all that which in life is already possessed of holiness.
From Belcaro Being Essays on Sundry Aesthetical Questions by Vernon Lee
Instead, Ted’s emphasis on personal growth and camaraderie rebuilds the Greyhounds from their league’s demoralized joke into its comeback kings, powered by their yearning to Believe.
From Salon ● Aug. 7, 2026
It’s possible those demoralized job seekers are pushing the participation rate lower, said Martin of Oxford Economics.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
But when he and his coaching staff took over the U.S. team in the fall of 2024, following its disastrous performance in the Copa América, he said he inherited a demoralized, dispirited group.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 25, 2026
Many have become demoralized by a sense that opportunities for socioeconomic mobility aren’t the same as they were during China’s boom years.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
Without Sanders, Spinks felt that the Peninsula team would be demoralized beyond redemption.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
Still, he said, it’s been demoralizing to have so many come back.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
Even when I know I’m delivering at a high level, being asked for constant updates on my progress can feel demoralizing.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 2026
The findings about the bat bridges were demoralizing for Altringham, who during his career appeared at several public inquiries into the impact of road-building projects on bats.
From Slate ● Apr. 28, 2026
The diminishment of the Washington Post hits hard because it feels like another demoralizing thing in our national life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 5, 2026
With all of this went the demoralizing effect of an unsuccessful war and the extraordinary challenges associated with rebuilding new state and local governments.
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
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.
