demoted; demoting
1
: to reduce to a lower grade or rank
demote a student
was demoted from major to captain
2
: to relegate to a less important position
a pitcher demoted to the bullpen
Examples of demote in a Sentence
Teachers can choose to demote a student to a lower grade.
The army major was demoted to captain.
Recent Examples on the Web
A bit of mordant familial humor held that the Great Depression had hit the year before, and the family had been demoted, but the new categorization was more likely the product of the family’s changing structure.
—
Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 14 June 2025
Hobbs helped conduct that probe, which concluded that he and other employees had been retaliated against by the district’s special education director; as a result, the board demoted four administrators.
—Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
What To Know Ames brought her discrimination claim against the Ohio Youth Department after she was passed over for promotion in favor of a lesbian woman and then demoted under a gay man.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
An attorney representing the two men and the county told jurors that Miller was never demoted and never suffered a loss of pay or job duties, despite being an at-will employee due to her high-level position.
—Sean Emery, Oc Register, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for demote
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Jelani Cobb, New Yorker, 14 June 2025
Hobbs helped conduct that probe, which concluded that he and other employees had been retaliated against by the district’s special education director; as a result, the board demoted four administrators.
—Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
What To Know Ames brought her discrimination claim against the Ohio Youth Department after she was passed over for promotion in favor of a lesbian woman and then demoted under a gay man.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
An attorney representing the two men and the county told jurors that Miller was never demoted and never suffered a loss of pay or job duties, despite being an at-will employee due to her high-level position.
—Sean Emery, Oc Register, 5 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for demote
Cite this Entry
“Demote.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/demote. Accessed 18 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share