1
as in to degrade
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
was unwilling to abase himself by pleading guilty to a crime that he did not commit
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2
as in to humiliate
to reduce to a lower standing in one's own eyes or in others' eyes
I certainly don't abase myself when I do good, honest manual labor
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Recent Examples of abase
Turturro was attracted to the novel’s house style: Its manic, sarcastic, abasing observations, largely written in the third person but never far from Sabbath’s perspective, seemed made for the theater.
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Marc Tracy, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2023
Pence has long since perfected the ability to abase himself in public without seeming the least bit ashamed.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2023
The question is whether the ways in which Pence abased himself in Trump’s efforts to hold on to power will make his testimony seem weaker or more credible.
—Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2023
The tension of the novel is between the femme’s self-abasing love for the brilliant masculine creator and the artist in search of her own form.
—Saidiya Hartman, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2023
He’s forced Republican politicians to publicly abase themselves and trash the nation’s premier law-enforcement agencies in an effort to stay in his good graces.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2022
Unfortunately, an impulse to abase oneself isn’t resolved by a recognition that human life is a collaboration.
—Caleb Crain, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2021
One by one, internees abase themselves before 60 of their fellow prisoners, repenting of their errors in thinking and their nonprogressive religious practices.
—James E. Person Jr., National Review, 17 Sep. 2020
By the end of the weekend, the entire NBA was in damage-control mode, profusely and absurdly abasing themselves.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 7 Oct. 2019
Marc Tracy, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2023
Pence has long since perfected the ability to abase himself in public without seeming the least bit ashamed.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2023
The question is whether the ways in which Pence abased himself in Trump’s efforts to hold on to power will make his testimony seem weaker or more credible.
—Amy Davidson Sorkin, The New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2023
The tension of the novel is between the femme’s self-abasing love for the brilliant masculine creator and the artist in search of her own form.
—Saidiya Hartman, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2023
He’s forced Republican politicians to publicly abase themselves and trash the nation’s premier law-enforcement agencies in an effort to stay in his good graces.
—Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 11 Aug. 2022
Unfortunately, an impulse to abase oneself isn’t resolved by a recognition that human life is a collaboration.
—Caleb Crain, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2021
One by one, internees abase themselves before 60 of their fellow prisoners, repenting of their errors in thinking and their nonprogressive religious practices.
—James E. Person Jr., National Review, 17 Sep. 2020
By the end of the weekend, the entire NBA was in damage-control mode, profusely and absurdly abasing themselves.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 7 Oct. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abase
Verb
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Here's Why the Election May Already Be Over | Opinion Donald Trump has spent his entire adult life objectifying, demeaning, and degrading women.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
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Bras made from cotton or wool are more sustainable and degrade much faster.Julia Ries, Outside Online, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Then, last year, the 49ers humiliated Dallas by the score of 42-10 at home.Vincent Frank, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024
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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
Verb
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Bitcoin’s edge over gold lies in its unparalleled scarcity and technological attributes—a mix between a tech stock and gold that cannot be debased and can settle globally in minutes.Ansel Lindner, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
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Trump was really at that Buck’s County McDonald’s, debasing himself for swing-state votes in the same way that candidates have for generations (see: Rick Perry eating a corn dog in 2011).Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Trump has spent much of his final week on the campaign trail baselessly trying to discredit the legitimacy of this year’s election.Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 4 Nov. 2024
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But on Monday, defense attorney Andrew Baldwin sought to discredit Weber by pointing out inconsistencies in his statements to police.Ron Wilkins, The Indianapolis Star, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Such a test would be a sign of China’s weakening influence over Pyongyang and could spur Seoul to try to acquire nuclear weapons of its own—a position that both South Korea and the United States officially oppose but is gaining traction in Western policy circles.Sungmin Cho, Foreign Affairs, 12 Nov. 2024
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With its climate leadership perceived to be weakening, New Zealand may get a cooler reception at COP than in previous years, especially from Pacific Island nations, Cooper said.Mahalia Dobson, NBC News, 10 Nov. 2024
Verb
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And subsequent research has suggested most of those who were poisoned had been drinking this bootleg alcohol for pleasure or escape, not protection from COVID-19.ByKai Kupferschmidt, science.org, 31 Oct. 2024
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The salty water slowly poisons living trees, leaving a haunted ghost forest of dead and dying timber.Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 31 Oct. 2024
Verb
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The two musicians released several tunes, with each one aiming to insult and demean the other, while also showcasing the talents of the artist behind the cut. Lamar and Drake both ended up scoring big hits on the Billboard charts with their diss tunes.Hugh McIntyre, Forbes, 12 Oct. 2024
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Trump won’t do anything for you, other than denigrate and demean you.Laura Washington, Chicago Tribune, 16 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Instructed by Khamenei to go after Iran’s unscrupulous and less Islamist leaders, the organization’s younger corps naturally began attacking some of its oligarchs, accusing them of being corrupted by financial interests and of being too timid in their dealings with the West.Saeid Golkar, Foreign Affairs, 11 Oct. 2024
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When confronted further about the Big Lie that also finds a fertile home on social media platforms, Vance declined to respond to questions about the validity of Trump’s loss, instead saying Democrats were hypocrites in claiming Russian ads corrupted the results of 2016.Philip Elliott, TIME, 2 Oct. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near abase
Cite this Entry
“Abase.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abase. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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