deprived; depriving
1
: to take something away from
… deprived him of his professorship …—
J. M. Phalen
J. M. Phalenthe risk of injury when the brain is deprived of oxygen
2
: to withhold something from
deprived a citizen of their rights
3
: to remove from office
… the Archbishop … would be deprived and sent to the Tower …—Edith Sitwell
Edith Sitwell4
obsolete
: remove
'Tis honor to deprive dishonored life …—Shakespeare
ShakespeareExamples of deprive in a Sentence
working those long hours was depriving him of his sleep
a prince who had been deprived after those who opposed the monarchy came to power
Recent Examples on the Web
Trump has deprived us of the particular luxury of hindsight for more than a decade now.
—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
2 July 2026
Virginia's enforcement of the new ban is a pattern or practice of conduct by the commonwealth's law enforcement officers that deprives the citizens of Virginia of their constitutional right to buy and sell arms protected by the Second Amendment.
—
Sarah Lynch Baldwin,
CBS News,
1 July 2026
Discomfort and harm are simply not the same thing, and continuing to deprive our children of discomfort is a sure way to set them up to fail in the real world.
—
Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez,
CNN Money,
30 June 2026
Some employees also owe their employers a deeper fiduciary duty, which one court has described as the duty to protect the employer’s interests and to avoid injuring the employer or depriving the employer of the employee’s skills.
—
Dan Eaton,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deprive
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show current usage.
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Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
2 July 2026
Virginia's enforcement of the new ban is a pattern or practice of conduct by the commonwealth's law enforcement officers that deprives the citizens of Virginia of their constitutional right to buy and sell arms protected by the Second Amendment.
—
Sarah Lynch Baldwin,
CBS News,
1 July 2026
Discomfort and harm are simply not the same thing, and continuing to deprive our children of discomfort is a sure way to set them up to fail in the real world.
—
Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez,
CNN Money,
30 June 2026
Some employees also owe their employers a deeper fiduciary duty, which one court has described as the duty to protect the employer’s interests and to avoid injuring the employer or depriving the employer of the employee’s skills.
—
Dan Eaton,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for deprive
Cite this Entry
“Deprive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/deprive. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
deprive
verb
de·prive
di-ˈprīv 
deprived; depriving
1
: to take something away from
deprive a ruler of power
2
: to stop from having something
deprived of sleep by street noises
deprivation
noun
ˌdep-rə-ˈvā-shən
Medical Definition
deprive
transitive verb
de·prive
di-ˈprīv
deprived; depriving
: to take something away from and especially something that is usually considered essential for mental or physical well-being
a child deprived of emotional support
tissue deprived of oxygen
Legal Definition
deprive
transitive verb
de·prive
deprived; depriving
: to take away or withhold something from
no person shall…be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law—U.S. Constitution amend. V
U.S. Constitution amend. VLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
