debase
Verb
Verb Forms: debased, debasing, debases
- To lower in quality, character, or value.
- corrupt morally or by intemperance or sensuality
- lower in value by increasing the base-metal content
- corrupt, debase, or make impure by adding a foreign or inferior substance; often by replacing valuable ingredients with inferior ones
- To lower in character, quality, or value; to degrade.
- To lower in position or rank.
- To lower the value of (a currency) by reducing the amount of valuable metal in the coins.
Examples
- Cheating would DEBASE the entire spirit of fair play in Words With Friends.
Origin / Etymology
From de- + base, from Old French bas, from Latin bassus. Cognate with Spanish debajo (“under, beneath, below”). Compare abase.
Synonyms
adulterate, alloy, corrupt, debauch, demoralise, demoralize, deprave, dilute, load, misdirect, pervert, profane, stretch, subvert, vitiate, abase, degrade, demean
Scrabble Score: 9
debase: valid Scrabble (US) TWL Worddebase: valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
debase: valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary