Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- v. To undermine the confidence or morale of; dishearten: an inconsistent policy that demoralized the staff.
- v. To put into disorder; confuse.
- v. To debase the morals of; corrupt.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- To corrupt or undermine the morals of; weaken or destroy the effect of moral principles on.
- To deprive of spirit or energy; dishearten; destroy the courage, confidence, or hope of; render incapable of brave or energetic effort: specifically used in relation to troops: as, the charge of our cavalry completely demoralized the enemy's left wing.
- To throw into confusion in general; bring into disorder; confuse mentally: as, he was badly demoralized by fright.
- Also spelled demoralise.
Wiktionary
- v. American To destroy morale; to dishearten.
GNU Webster's 1913
- v. To corrupt or undermine in morals; to destroy or lessen the effect of moral principles on; to render corrupt or untrustworthy in morals, in discipline, in courage, spirit, etc.; to weaken in spirit or efficiency.
WordNet 3.0
- v. corrupt morally or by intemperance or sensuality
- v. lower someone's spirits; make downhearted
- v. confuse or put into disorder
Examples
“President Robert Mugabe blames Western sanctions for the troubles and says price hikes are an attempt to "demoralize" voters ahead of polling day.”
“They may be fierce and terrible, they may bring wretchedness and ruin, they may 'demoralize' armies and people, they may be dreadful evils, and leave long trails of desolation, but they are none the less wars for victories in which men will return thanks while the world shall stand.”
The Continental Monthly, Vol. 6, No 4, August, 1864 Devoted To Literature And National Policy
“I was convinced that it was inappropriate for the navy, and I thought it would demoralize my sailors . . .”
“Strengthening anti-rape provisions in policy would “demoralize” our troops.”
“It is just another crafted ploy to demoralize the public.”
“Its methods included the use of force in diverse ways: to destroy enemy fighters, to demoralize both combatants and sympathizers through punitive action; and/or to break the combatant/civilian nexus by singling out leaders while cultivating relations with non-combatants.”
The Huffington Post: Michael Brenner: COIN Classic, New COIN, Post-Modern COIN
“Mujahid blamed U.S. intelligence agencies, saying they were trying "to demoralize the Taliban.”
“I should also point out that the progressive bloggers are doing as much to demoralize the base as anyone else, since progressives tend to trust their insight and if bloggers like Kos, Aravosis and Hamsher are constantly accusing the party of selling out and capitulating, well, guess what happens to the morale of their readership?”
Balloon Juice » Blog Archive » Beatings will continue until morale improves
“Given that the GOP's ultimate independent thinker and beloved maverick, President John McCain, has chosen not to run for re-election—oh wait, he's not president—moderates and the media turned on Mr. McCain in 2008 and used his independent streak to demoralize conservative voters.”
The Wall Street Journal: Independents Aren't Afraid of Bold Political Reform
“Hillel Neuer of UN Watch said the main effect of the report, compiled after a review of Libya's record last November, "was to bolster Gaddafi's oppressive regime, demoralize his victims and harm the reputation of the U.N.”
The Huffington Post: Dr. Jeffrey H. Toney: On Humanity Score Card, Does Libya Trump United States?
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘demoralize’.
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Words build meanings from origins( et...
These come from gamma meditation ,I think.
discursive, exogenous, machinations, purportedly, sumptuous, congruity, cantankerous, incongruous, festoon, hessian, ratiocinative, stratigraphic and 2046 more...
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LIT - Iliad - key words and protagonists
abduct, abducting, abductor, Achaea, Achaean, Achilles, advise, Aegean, Aegean Sea, Aegina, aegis, Aeneas and 713 more...
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RPG
rogue, alchemy, lady's favor, trollkin, herald's call, critical hit, insect plague, alteration, conjuration, destruction, mysticism, illusion and 65 more...
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capitalcreative's Words
deviltry, visceral, cassanova, assuage, genesis, hot minute, osmosis, wistful, sublime, loathe, farfetched, newfangled and 283 more...
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Words I Know
List of most of the words I've learned
garner, abase, abate, abdicate, abduct, aberration, abet, abhor, abide, abject, abjure, abnegation and 1046 more...
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simple & useful9
heartrendingly, rancorous, ferocity, earful, dispiriting, dandification, ascribing, monotonic, smattering, yesteryear, sword of damocles, blubbering and 104 more...
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NTDW1
template, modal, sublingual, tandem, polycentric, septuagenarian, token, irrevocable, denotive, augural, aberrant, phlebotomy and 1188 more...
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descriptors - verbs & adverbs
simper, grind, apropos, grumble, cower, cringe, recoil, imbue, implored, juxtaposes, demoralize, eviscerate and 8 more...
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