as in degradation
a sinking to a state of low moral standards and behavior
the debasement of professional sports to a shamelessly commercial enterprise
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Recent Examples of debasement
Dollar debasement Emmanuel Cau, head of European equity strategy at Barclays, expects the euro to extend recent gains against the dollar.
—
Michael Considine, CNBC, 21 Apr. 2026
Bakri’s face is impassive and exhausted during this casual debasement, his voice low, and his tone deadpan, as though Salim has been forced to do all this a million times before.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
Investors who are particularly concerned about currency debasement or geopolitical instability — both of which have driven gold's price run in recent years — may also find the physical gold component meaningful.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
Over and over, Colin takes stock of his own debasement.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Bitcoin has failed to respond to typical drivers like dollar weakness or geopolitical risk, unlike gold and silver which rallied to records as global tensions fueled fears about dollar debasement.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
In a Substack post Monday, Burry argued that the original cryptocurrency, which has fallen 40% since peaking in October, has been exposed as a purely speculative asset, failing to take off as a debasement hedge similar to precious metals.
—Emily Mason, Bloomberg, 3 Feb. 2026
Powell did not directly address the longer-term debasement argument, but his emphasis on anchored expectations suggests the Fed sees little evidence that the gold rally reflects a fundamental erosion of monetary credibility.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 28 Jan. 2026
Michael Considine, CNBC, 21 Apr. 2026
Bakri’s face is impassive and exhausted during this casual debasement, his voice low, and his tone deadpan, as though Salim has been forced to do all this a million times before.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 24 Mar. 2026
Investors who are particularly concerned about currency debasement or geopolitical instability — both of which have driven gold's price run in recent years — may also find the physical gold component meaningful.
—Angelica Leicht, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2026
Over and over, Colin takes stock of his own debasement.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Bitcoin has failed to respond to typical drivers like dollar weakness or geopolitical risk, unlike gold and silver which rallied to records as global tensions fueled fears about dollar debasement.
—Bloomberg, Oc Register, 4 Feb. 2026
In a Substack post Monday, Burry argued that the original cryptocurrency, which has fallen 40% since peaking in October, has been exposed as a purely speculative asset, failing to take off as a debasement hedge similar to precious metals.
—Emily Mason, Bloomberg, 3 Feb. 2026
Powell did not directly address the longer-term debasement argument, but his emphasis on anchored expectations suggests the Fed sees little evidence that the gold rally reflects a fundamental erosion of monetary credibility.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 28 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debasement
Noun
-
One man’s modernity is, of course, another’s degradation, and, as dinner was served, the conversation turned to such recent innovations as ghost runners, pitch clocks, and robot umps, none of them to Murray’s liking.—
Ben McGrath,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
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Critical rehabilitation work has begun on about 1 ½ miles of sanitary sewer pipe in Macomb County, Michigan, after utility crews found severe degradation in the line.—
Paula Wethington,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
Noun
-
The Criminal Division will not allow foreign actors to exploit the American financial system and use it as a safe haven for the proceeds of their corruption.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
19 May 2026
-
The vote on March 22 was marred by allegations of foreign influence and corruption.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
19 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Debasement.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debasement. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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