demote

verb

de·​mote di-ˈmōt 

ˌdē-

demoted; demoting

transitive verb

1

: to reduce to a lower grade or rank

demote a student

was demoted from major to captain

2

: to relegate to a less important position

a pitcher demoted to the bullpen

demotion

di-ˈmō-shən 

ˌdē-

noun

Synonyms

• break
• bust
• degrade
• disrate
• downgrade
• reduce

Examples of demote in a Sentence

Teachers can choose to demote a student to a lower grade.

The army major was demoted to captain.

Recent Examples on the Web

Three top officials at the agency have been demoted as a result. —Jonathan Blitzer, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025

Last week, Martin demoted several top prosecutors in Jan. 6 lawsuits, including the leads on the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers cases. —Meredith Kile, People.com, 5 Mar. 2025

Soon after being told she wasn’t getting promoted, Ames was also demoted from her position as a program administrator. —Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2025

Around the same time, Ames learned she was being demoted to her previous secretarial role, resulting in an annual pay cut from about $100,000 to $60,000. —Reuters, NBC News, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

de- + -mote (as in promote)

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for demote

• afloat
• azote
• banknote
• bareboat
• benzoate
• connote
• cutthroat
• denote
• devote
• endnote
• footnote
• greatcoat

Kids Definition

demote

verb

de·​mote di-ˈmōt 

ˈdē-

demoted; demoting

: to reduce to a lower grade or rank

demotion

di-ˈmō-shən 

ˈdē-

noun