(v. t.) To make little or less in a moral sense; to speak of in a depreciatory or contemptuous way.
Example Sentences:
(1) Harping on endlessly about a woman’s hair, legs and handbag instead of her ideas and achievements can be horribly belittling, a way of refusing to take her seriously as a professional.
(2) This is a dangerous moment for politics in Britain: it is not the moment to ignore or belittle the angry cry from voters telling us they are deeply sick of politics as usual.
(3) The more they feel insulted and belittled, the stronger their support for Corbyn.
(4) Comment is perfectly legitimate, but the sneering, supercilious, specious and dismissive contributions masquerading as ‘commentary’ belittle the claims of a ‘quality’ paper.” Before attempting to assess the validity of the reader’s analysis – broadly shared by some other readers – I think his email reflects one or two other interesting aspects of the demographics of the Guardian’s readership and the left.
(5) It happens within a society where we repeatedly hear victims dismissed, belittled and disbelieved at best, or, at worst,blamed for their own assaults.
(6) Perhaps Gove should attend some history lessons taught by the professionals he so belittles so that he can learn how to read and cite sources properly.
(7) That is not to belittle HIV – it is a life-changing condition, and some of the treatments have their side-effects – but, as HIV expert Prof Jonathan Weber put it to me, the treatment regimens developed in the mid-1990s are “so successful it’s like a miracle”.
(8) They had a candidate with pro-Putin, pro-Russian views who belittled Nato, who was willing to potentially remove sanctions on Russia and by contrast they had in Secretary Clinton a candidate very tough on Russia.
(9) Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said: "I regret the Australian PM statement belittling the phone-tapping in Indonesia without feeling guilty.
(10) The eccentric, gonzo-ish path that Vice has chosen to pursue instead has itself come in for sharp criticism from detractors among those he belittles as football-chasers.
(11) Modotti, Ollin and, to a lesser degree, Novo (who was ultimately a man and therefore less irritating to those in power), were cast aside and belittled by those who had it in their power to do so.
(12) He reacted angrily to a question about his father’s comments to the Guardian, claiming words were put in his mouth and accusing the media of trying to belittle the closure.
(13) The last Labour government sometimes appeared to belittle the concerns of those who were fearful of the pace of change, or longed for stability or order."
(14) It is acceptable to criticise and belittle Islam because it is a religion, not an ethnic grouping – and therefore fair game.
(15) "People belittled me, implying that it was my fault and that I shouldn't be an independent woman," she added.
(16) In 2010 Lula came under fire after belittling the plight of political prisoners on hunger strike in Cuba. "
(17) What strikes me, as it must have done him, is the way in which the intention behind the article – to belittle the food bank initiative – was turned on its head by the social media backlash.
(18) With no intention of belittling the importance of chronic ischemic heart disease (CIHD) in modern cardiology, the article focuses the attention on primary alcoholic heart disease--alcoholic cardiomyopathy (ACMP)--which arouses a far from causal interest due to the prevalence of alcoholism.
(19) In treating Plath as simply an object of sympathy, I suspect I have belittled her.
(20) Demirtas has been the target of fierce campaign attacks by Erdogan, who belittled him a “pretty boy” who is merely a front for the outlawed separatist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).
Depreciate
Definition:
(v. t.) To lessen in price or estimated value; to lower the worth of; to represent as of little value or claim to esteem; to undervalue.
(v. i.) To fall in value; to become of less worth; to sink in estimation; as, a paper currency will depreciate, unless it is convertible into specie.
Example Sentences:
(1) The researcher is completing a PhD on the superyacht scene and says the vessels are unique among prestige assets: unlike private jets they are not a useful mode of transport; unlike art and property, they always depreciate in value.
(2) If the notes aren't spent, they can be renewed by buying a stamp that costs 2% of the note's face value – so over a year, the currency depreciates 8%.
(3) Olivier Blanchard, IMF director of research, said: “New factors supporting growth – lower oil prices, but also depreciation of euro and yen – are more than offset by persistent negative forces, including the lingering legacies of the crisis and lower potential growth in many countries”.
(4) Depreciation and salaries represented the major components of cost.
(5) "The ISM noted that some of the recent strength is due to the effects of the accelerated investment depreciation tax allowance, which expired at the end of last year.
(6) However, much of the gains followed a depreciation of the currency, which is not something Cyprus can follow while it remains inside the euro.
(7) The depreciation in the Australian dollar is also helping.
(8) The credit rating agency said that according to its estimate of ITV's adjusted debt to Ebitda – earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation – it believes the ratio will "exceed" four times for 2008 "with a possible increase to about five times in 2009".
(9) No one buys homes there, because your money will probably depreciate.
(10) Weaker growth in China weighs on demand, while the depreciation of the yen is making supply more competitive."
(11) The Black Lives Matter movement is about more than just justice for our deaths – it’s about a depreciation of black life The War Machine has always had an insatiable need for bodies of color from before the birth of this nation.
(12) Britain and the United States have at least been able to relieve some of the pressure on their economies through a depreciating currency.
(13) We expect the composition of growth to rebalance towards net trade, as the headwinds facing households from the erosion of their real incomes weigh on consumer spending while the depreciation of sterling supports net trade,” said Simon Kirby, NIESR’s head of macroeconomic forecasting.
(14) It is now profitable before interest, tax and depreciation charges, and looking to expand again.
(15) "If it persisted, the recent further depreciation of sterling was likely to put additional upwards pressure on inflation over the next few quarters," the minutes said.
(16) Currently there is no basis for the renminbi exchange rate to continue to depreciate,” PBoC assistant governor Zhang Xiaohui said on Thursday .
(17) For example, Kate and Matt Maloney , a young couple from Moranbah in Queensland who were honoured as investors of the year in 2012 by Your Investment Property Magazine, owe lenders $5.8m in mortgage debt on a depreciated property portfolio currently worth $2.3m.
(18) Across the world, protectionist trade measures have been on the rise.” Apart from the sharp depreciation of the pound, the IMF said financial markets’ reaction to Brexit vote had “generally been contained”, with shares up and the appetite for taking risk recovering after an initial plunge.
(19) But even though its share price has fallen since the depreciation of the Chinese currency began on Tuesday, the Swiss company said the move will prove positive in the end.
(20) The slim document predicts that underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation will leap by more than 80% from £31.7m in 2010 to almost £60m in 2012.