as in degraded
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
a book that examines the debased character of the criminal mind
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in corrupted
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
we debase ourselves when we adopt the moral code and behavior of our despised enemies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in humiliated
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
our failure to win a single game completely debased us
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of debased
Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2026
But the influencer landscape is getting debased and splintered and a bit draining, even for Kylie.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 11 Mar. 2026
Now, several polls show that Wyomingites oppose killing wildlife with vehicles, which gives public officials in the next Legislative session an opening to prohibit this debased practice.
—Wendy Keefover, Denver Post, 10 Mar. 2026
The script, penned by Bartek Bartosik and Naqqash Khalid, becomes bizarrely moralistic by the end, insinuating that the debased and debauched might perhaps see their problems solved by becoming domesticated.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 6 Mar. 2026
In an era of debased and divisive politics, Jon Batiste is putting the pop back into populism.
—Andrew Gilbert, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Dec. 2025
Only the first is still fashionable, and the last has been so debased, misused, and weaponized over the centuries as to be almost unspeakable in polite company.
—Zadie Smith, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
But in recent years, acts of brazen violence have been the grim drumbeat of a debased national politics.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
Rachel Wetzler, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
Within this world no others exist, except as things to be debased.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
Dogville, from 2003, is an experimental Lars von Trier film shot on a stage set in which Kidman plays a woman debased and abused by the inhabitants of a small town.
—Wendell Steavenson, Vogue, 8 Oct. 2025
Unlike bonds, which promise repayment of the primary investment at a future date, warranting demands for higher yields to offset inflation concerns, gold is a physical asset that cannot be debased by fiscal mismanagement or political interference.
—Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
And this has lent Margot a debased sort of celebrity.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 6 Apr. 2026
But the influencer landscape is getting debased and splintered and a bit draining, even for Kylie.
—Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 11 Mar. 2026
Now, several polls show that Wyomingites oppose killing wildlife with vehicles, which gives public officials in the next Legislative session an opening to prohibit this debased practice.
—Wendy Keefover, Denver Post, 10 Mar. 2026
The script, penned by Bartek Bartosik and Naqqash Khalid, becomes bizarrely moralistic by the end, insinuating that the debased and debauched might perhaps see their problems solved by becoming domesticated.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 6 Mar. 2026
In an era of debased and divisive politics, Jon Batiste is putting the pop back into populism.
—Andrew Gilbert, San Francisco Chronicle, 15 Dec. 2025
Only the first is still fashionable, and the last has been so debased, misused, and weaponized over the centuries as to be almost unspeakable in polite company.
—Zadie Smith, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
But in recent years, acts of brazen violence have been the grim drumbeat of a debased national politics.
—Eric Cortellessa, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
Haphazardly propped on the ground with wiring and hardware exposed, the flags appear as symbols debased and emptied after centuries of misuse.
—Rachel Wetzler, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
Within this world no others exist, except as things to be debased.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
Dogville, from 2003, is an experimental Lars von Trier film shot on a stage set in which Kidman plays a woman debased and abused by the inhabitants of a small town.
—Wendell Steavenson, Vogue, 8 Oct. 2025
Unlike bonds, which promise repayment of the primary investment at a future date, warranting demands for higher yields to offset inflation concerns, gold is a physical asset that cannot be debased by fiscal mismanagement or political interference.
—Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debased
Adjective
-
But in 2003, it was considered too degraded to be capable of producing a match using methods available at the time.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
8 May 2026
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And here was someone who was being completely humiliated, publicly humiliated, degraded, disgraced, handed a punishment that no member of the family has had — to have all their titles taken away, to be effectively un-royal, de-royaled.—
Stephanie Nolasco,
FOXNews.com,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
At first, the gorgeous ripe berries are evidence of how perfect our planet can be, corrupted only by the selfish impulses of a human race that’s largely uninterested in caring for anything on it when there isn’t a profit to be made.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
18 May 2026
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An independent redistricting commission — transparent, balanced and insulated from the very political pressures that have corrupted this process.—
Daryl Campbell,
Sun Sentinel,
6 May 2026
Verb
-
You can be humiliated, and won’t that be awful?—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
19 May 2026
-
Those who don’t get the job leave diminished, sometimes humiliated, and the institution absorbs the damage quietly for years.—
Paul Hardart,
Fortune,
9 May 2026
Adjective
-
The film explores themes of power and coming of age in a corrupt society, with campus culture wars and climate grief at its center.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
16 May 2026
-
Dahlia, a disillusioned police aide, breaks into the mansion of the corrupt police chief Bernal and steals the money from his safe, unloading the funds to slum dwellers whose settlement Bernal razed down.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
15 May 2026
Verb
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However, when the researchers adjusted the findings for other factors that can affect risk for the conditions, known as confounders — such as genetic and familial influences and the reasons for taking antidepressants — most links significantly weakened or disappeared.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
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Starmer’s authority weakened after Labor’s poor performance in recent elections, blamed on policy missteps, economic struggles, and the prime minister’s controversial decisions, including appointing an ambassador with ties to Jeffrey Epstein.—
Pan Pylas,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
Verb
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The case later drew attention from the Innocence Project, which said advances in DNA testing ultimately discredited the prosecution’s core forensic evidence.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
7 May 2026
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But whereas leftist thinkers starting with Marx saw the liberal ideal as totally discredited, a mere camouflage for capitalist power, Habermas kept faith with the utopian potential of liberalism.—
Adam Kirsch,
The Atlantic,
3 May 2026
Adjective
-
That night, both the President and his wife periodically fled upstairs to check on their most beloved son, the eleven-year-old Willie, sick with a fever that would kill him two weeks later.—
Thomas Mallon,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
-
What this narrative neglects are all the ways treatment might cause terrible side effects, or the long period one spends being sick, and how one’s identity may have changed in the interim.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 May 2026
Verb
-
The leaders best positioned through each of these disruptions were not the ones calling us when the situation deteriorated, but those who had already built their structure during the quiet years.—
Dwayne Chauhan,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
-
Over the course of the next hour, the weather deteriorated rapidly.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Debased.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debased. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
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