as in degrades
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
the long stay on a tropical isle had debauched the ship's crew to the point where they no longer acted like naval professionals
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debauches
Verb
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Phase 1 degrades military power and holds hostage the regime’s economic lifelines.—
Richard Goldberg,
The Atlantic,
16 Mar. 2026 -
And the implants can sometimes move or cause scar tissue buildup over time that degrades their signals.—
Tanya Lewis,
Scientific American,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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His relationship with his Jewish neighbors, the Brodskys, grows closer as Nazi power corrupts France.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
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As Jay Jonah Atterbury, one of a handful of new characters on the fourth season of Industry, Kal Penn weaponizes and corrupts the stoner quirks viewers may recognize from his years playing Kumar Patel in the Harold & Kumar films.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The turtle slows, more organisms attach, and the animal’s condition deteriorates.—
Ryan Brennan,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 Mar. 2026
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The movie, out now, follows Irene (Liu), her son Joe (Lawrence Shou), whose relationship deteriorates in the wake of his schizophrenia diagnosis.—
Hannah Malach,
InStyle,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Later that season, Eric humiliates Bill in front of their Pierpoint colleagues by insulting his work quality and Bill dies from brain cancer.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
6 Mar. 2026
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Thecla humiliates him by ripping his robe and tearing the wreath off his head.—
Christy Cobb,
The Conversation,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Dark money significantly weakens democracy.—
Willie Wilson,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Mar. 2026
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Even as the wealth tax debate weakens Khanna’s support among Silicon Valley heavyweights, this may not be enough to unseat him, Maviglio said, noting the tax would affect fewer than 250 people in the state.—
Julia Shapero,
The Hill,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Sensing Scarlet’s resolve to destroy him, Claudius poisons her.—
Carlos Aguilar,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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With Manhunt, Felker-Martin subverts this convention, creating a post-contagion world in which trans women (and men and nonbinary people) not only exist but tell the story themselves across multiple viewpoint characters.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
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The seven-part limited series, which aired its second episode Sunday, subverts expectations at every turn, from its peculiar characters to the layered storytelling of writer-showrunner-director Steven Conrad to the nuanced performances of an enviable cast.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Freddy Krueger debases the suburban American ideal through the dreams of teenagers in Nightmare on Elm Street.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Debauches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debauches. Accessed 22 Mar. 2026.
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