humiliate
verb
hu·mil·i·ate
hyü-ˈmi-lē-ˌāt 
yü-
humiliated; humiliating
: to reduce (someone) to a lower position in one's own eyes or others' eyes : to make (someone) ashamed or embarrassed : mortify
hoped they wouldn't humiliate themselves in their next game
accused her of humiliating him in public
feel so humiliated
Synonyms
Examples of humiliate in a Sentence
I hope I don't humiliate myself during the presentation.
He accused her of trying to humiliate him in public.
She was hurt and deeply humiliated by the lies he told about her.
Recent Examples on the Web
Then, last year, the 49ers humiliated Dallas by the score of 42-10 at home.
—
Vincent Frank, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Shaking down Bodhi, killing some bikers, jokingly humiliating his ex-girlfriend on the witness stand — less than ideal, but nothing you’re not supposed to be able to live with.
—Sean T. Collins, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024
The whipping-sound phone app was well known among students and became a tool of racial torment used to humiliate and degrade Black students during the 2022-2023 school year, the lawsuit alleges.
—Ben Poston, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
Young people will sometimes add someone into a group chat and then post an embarrassing photo to humiliate the person.
—Kara Alaimo, CNN, 25 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for humiliate 
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Vincent Frank, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
Shaking down Bodhi, killing some bikers, jokingly humiliating his ex-girlfriend on the witness stand — less than ideal, but nothing you’re not supposed to be able to live with.
—Sean T. Collins, Vulture, 13 Oct. 2024
The whipping-sound phone app was well known among students and became a tool of racial torment used to humiliate and degrade Black students during the 2022-2023 school year, the lawsuit alleges.
—Ben Poston, Los Angeles Times, 18 Oct. 2024
Young people will sometimes add someone into a group chat and then post an embarrassing photo to humiliate the person.
—Kara Alaimo, CNN, 25 Sep. 2024
See all Example Sentences for humiliate
Dictionary Entries Near humiliate
Cite this Entry
“Humiliate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/humiliate. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
humiliate
verb
hu·mil·i·ate
hyü-ˈmil-ē-ˌāt
yü-
humiliated; humiliating
: to cause a loss of pride or self-respect : humble
Etymology
from Latin humiliatus "made to lose pride or self-respect," from earlier humiliare "to make low or humble," from humilis "low, humble," from humus "earth"
Word Origin
In modern English we sometimes say that a person who has been criticized or humiliated has been put down. We speak as though the person had actually been forced to the ground or made to bow down in front of someone else. The origins of the word humiliate itself also suggest the idea of physically putting someone down to the ground. Humiliate can be be traced back to the Latin humus, meaning "earth, ground." From humus came the Latin adjective humilis, meaning "low, humble," which later gave rise to the verb humiliare, meaning "to make low or humble." The English humiliate derives from Latin humiliare.
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