as in corrupts
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
the belief that pornography depraves society as a whole
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for depraves
Verb
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One nanny will try to get to the bottom of it before all the partying, power and privilege corrupts her.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
21 Apr. 2026 -
The criticism most often leveled at proposals to support journalism is that government money corrupts editorial independence, which is a very real concern.—
Julian Baron,
Baltimore Sun,
19 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Proteins, which are made up of sequences of amino acids, are more robust than ancient DNA, a fragile molecule that degrades relatively easily.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
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For people with diabetes, heat degrades temperature‑sensitive medications and makes blood sugar harder to control.—
Anthony Nicome,
STAT,
13 May 2026
Verb
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As complexity rises, decisions fragment, priorities shift and trust weakens.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
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Excluding unhoused people from public spaces reinforces stigma and weakens the social bonds that support stability and recovery.—
Shianne LeClaire,
Hartford Courant,
17 May 2026
Verb
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That is why a hedge here makes sense while markets sit near highs, VIX remains compressed near the high teens, and investors are still leaning heavily into a handful of leadership names as the macro backdrop deteriorates.—
Tony Zhang,
CNBC,
13 May 2026
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Hospitals use the same billing codes for the ER visit, whether a patient’s condition deteriorates or not.—
Andrew Jones,
Miami Herald,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, the unceasing churn of clothing, footwear and accessories depletes soils, poisons the water, pollutes the air, drives deforestation, accelerates biodiversity loss and generates runaway planet-warming emissions that undermine brands’ lofty environmental ambitions.—
Jasmin Malik Chua,
Footwear News,
1 May 2026
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And two, baking soda is an indiscriminate weed killer that poisons the soil.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Incompetent leadership humiliates us on the global stage.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 May 2026
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And the President doesn’t seem to mind if Vance humiliates himself running errands.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Plums’ layered reality allows room for pleasures native to the teen-drama genre—friendship, gossip, fantasy, romance—even as the show explores how Gilead systematically restricts and perverts the joys of girlhood.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The story begins on a train, somewhat subverts the typical strangers-on-a-train narrative in which a chance encounter leads to a love story (that is, the Linklater version rather than the Hitchcock one).—
Deborah Treisman,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
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The play subverts itself, never allowing an audience to gain a commanding foothill, even at the end when (suffice it to say) the watchers become the watched.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Depraves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/depraves. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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