undermining

American  

[uhn-der-mahy-ning] / ˈʌn dərˌmaɪ nɪŋ /

noun

1. the act or process of injuring, attacking, or destroying something or someone indirectly or by imperceptible degrees, often leading to a dramatic collapse.

   The undermining of Scottish Gaelic as a viable language resulted not from decrees, but from a gradual weakening of independent Scottish institutions.

2. the act or process of weakening something or causing it to collapse by removing its underlying support, as by erosion.

   During the heavy rains, blocked sewers caused the flooding of the basement and the undermining of the wall by water.

3. the act of digging or tunneling underneath something, as a military stronghold.

   The siege works were now close enough to allow the undermining of some of the bastions of the fortress.

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adjective

1. weakening something or someone gradually or indirectly.

   Seating students in rows, so they cannot see each other’s faces, has an undermining effect on their engagement.

2. digging or tunneling underneath something, or removing or eroding its underlying support.

   The land along the shoreline collapsed because of undermining waves and currents.

Other Word Forms

• underminingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of undermining

First recorded in 1350–1400; undermin(e) ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun senses; undermin(e) ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses

Example Sentences

In return she and senior colleagues in the legal profession warned MSPs they risk undermining the rule of law.

From BBC

“Putting structure around family support allows retirees to give intentionally and confidently rather than reactively and helps ensure that generosity strengthens the plan instead of undermining it.”

From MarketWatch

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced the call for an investigation in a post on X, saying that X, Meta and TikTok were undermining the “mental health, dignity, and rights” of children.

From The Wall Street Journal

To keep going after that and force them back in each other’s lives, it would have felt like it was undermining the stakes of everything we set up.

From Los Angeles Times

Another risk is that household wealth has been buoyed by years of equity gains, and a sustained selloff could cause consumers to pull back, undermining an engine of economic growth.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• subversion