(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).
Flirt
Definition:
(v. t.) To throw with a jerk or quick effort; to fling suddenly; as, they flirt water in each other's faces; he flirted a glove, or a handkerchief.
(v. t.) To toss or throw about; to move playfully to and fro; as, to flirt a fan.
(v. t.) To jeer at; to treat with contempt; to mock.
(v. i.) To run and dart about; to act with giddiness, or from a desire to attract notice; especially, to play the coquette; to play at courtship; to coquet; as, they flirt with the young men.
(v. i.) To utter contemptuous language, with an air of disdain; to jeer or gibe.
(n.) A sudden jerk; a quick throw or cast; a darting motion; hence, a jeer.
(v. t.) One who flirts; esp., a woman who acts with giddiness, or plays at courtship; a coquette; a pert girl.
(a.) Pert; wanton.
Example Sentences:
(1) Some in the industry expect buyouts from big internet companies like Google, which was rumoured to have flirted with WhatsApp earlier this year.
(2) Trump and his wife, Melania, descended an escalator into the basement lobby of the Trump Tower on 16 June 2015, for an announcement many observers said would never come: the celebrity real estate developer, who had flirted with running for office in the past, would announce that he was launching his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination.
(3) The woman from Lesotho alleges one guard who flirted with her in 2009 is still working there because a friend had complained to her about the same man when she was released from Yarl's Wood earlier this month.
(4) In her first straight dramatic role, albeit one with comedy elements, Hart has proved a hit: Chummy's awkward flirting with Constable Noakes, wobbly cycling and surprise medical ability delighting the show's more than 10 million viewers.
(5) Some bands delight in producing music that flirts with dangerous themes.
(6) A well-known conservative, Ditka publicly flirted with running against Democratic candidate Barack Obama, then a state senator, for the open seat in the US Senate vacated by Illinois senator Peter Fitzgerald in 2004.
(7) The slick advert, released this week, shows a young couple flirting at a polling site , before the woman grabs the man by the neck and pulls him into the election booth as heavy breaths accompany a techno soundtrack.
(8) Burnham said “a language of xenophobia has entered the lexicon” of British politics and that many politicians were flirting with racism.
(9) Click here to view Ingrid Jungermann's "homoneurotic" Kickstarter-funded webseries sees "internally homophobic" lesbian Ingrid panic-spiral about everything, from attending trans parties to flirting with bar staff.
(10) Sapp flirts with apocalyptic rhetoric on the way to the conclusion that Trump recognizes no power higher than his own ego.
(11) At the same time, don’t we want our pop stars to at least flirt with irresponsibility?
(12) You’ve already seen the first sorties: since the separation of powers is the longest-standing of American ideas, the tweeted hostility to a “so-called judge” crosses a line only Richard Nixon ever flirted with.
(13) Faced with a rapidly ageing society, skyrocketing housing prices, low birth rates and a population that works the longest hours in the world, this country of 5.3 million people has made various attempts over the years to encourage its citizens to marry and procreate, from government-funded speed-dating schemes to educational flyers on how to flirt.
(14) But if Facebook flirts too brazenly with commercial partners, it may see its growth slow down dramatically.
(15) They seem to flirt with the idea of replacing democratic institutions.
(16) Even one journalist in a gay bar has to work hard not to spoil the party, so the poor Russians who came in on Friday and Saturday night for a peaceful drink and a flirt must have felt like animals in a zoo.
(17) Both were then publicly flirting with a presidential bid but neither Palin nor Trump eventually threw their hat in the ring.
(18) He dropped out to set up Rawkus Records with friends, before his father enticed him into the family business, offering him the chance to run internet businesses at a time when the world's big media groups were first flirting with the online world.
(19) As a director, too, Hytner has continued to flirt with multiple identities.
(20) West Ham's manager of three years, who steered the team to a 13th-place finish this season after flirting with relegation for long periods, held talks with the co-chairman David Sullivan on Tuesday amid grumbling supporters' discontent at the style of football the side have played.