as in slighting
intended to make a person or thing seem of little importance or value
there's no need for belittling comments about your brother's trumpet playing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in dismissing
to express scornfully one's low opinion of
belittled the action star's acting ability
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of belittling
Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
To those belittling the Orlando soccer team’s championship, the NWSL is the premier women’s soccer league in the nation and their win is certainly deserving of praise.
—Ticked Off, Orlando Sentinel, 9 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for belittling 
Adjective
Yet, since sometime before July 23, 2022, an anonymous user has been steadily updating IMDb’s trivia section on Corsage with hostile and belittling comments presented under the guise of background information.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2023
The boundaries revolve around disrespectful or belittling speech.
—Abigail Van Buren, oregonlive, 28 Sep. 2020
Verb
But these are two of the nation’s leading newspapers trying to curry favor with someone who spent his first term discounting, belittling and attacking media and, as his quote Thursday shows, plans to do so again if journalists cross him.
—Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 13 Dec. 2024
To those belittling the Orlando soccer team’s championship, the NWSL is the premier women’s soccer league in the nation and their win is certainly deserving of praise.
—Ticked Off, Orlando Sentinel, 9 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for belittling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for belittling
Verb
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Top Stories Just before Christmas, Biden egregiously commuted the sentences of 37 out of 40 death row inmates, dismissing years of careful work by prosecutors, judges, and juries.—
The Editors,
National Review,
6 Jan. 2025
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The company stuck to its core DVD rental model while dismissing opportunities to innovate on the periphery.—
ByMargie Warrell,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The crude and insulting attacks Democratic lawmakers have leveled at President Donald Trump and Elon Musk threaten to drive away voters who want the party to work with the new president to cut wasteful spending.—
Paul Bedard,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
12 Feb. 2025
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The positive media coverage of Thomas was the insulting cherry on top of the situation for Estabrook.—
Jackson Thompson,
Fox News,
12 Feb. 2025
Verb
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This approach ensures a steady cash flow by minimizing overdue payments and reduces the risk of bad debt through proactive monitoring and segmentation.—
Ashish Srimal,
Forbes,
27 Dec. 2024
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These plans ensure that if a breach occurs, the response is swift, organized and transparent, minimizing damage and protecting customer data.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes,
26 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The principal accused him of disrupting his Middleborough Middle School and of demeaning LGBTQ students.—
Lauren Green,
Fox News,
28 Jan. 2025
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Her mother, a day laborer who had to leave school at age 10 to work, cleaned houses under the demeaning conditions of the Jim Crow era: Butler sometimes accompanied her mom on the job, where they were required to enter homes through back doors.—
Stephen Kearse,
Smithsonian Magazine,
2 Jan. 2025
Verb
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However, as the FOMC has cut interest rates since last summer, that risk though material today, is diminishing.—
Simon Moore,
Forbes,
7 Jan. 2025
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The impact of diminishing water resources will not only impact drinking water but also sanitation and hygiene, hydroelectricity, crop growth and food supply.—
Dan Lambe,
Forbes,
6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The 2023 Economic Report Of The President published in March of 2023 was relatively disparaging of cryptoassets and DLTs.—
Lawrence Wintermeyer,
Forbes,
5 Dec. 2024
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Prior to appearing on Cunningham's show on Monday, Huggins made more disparaging remarks about Xavier.—
Emily DeLetter,
The Enquirer,
10 May 2023
Verb
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Finally, Assad’s fall has fueled domestic discontent among loyalists to the regime in Tehran, with some calling the loss a strategic blunder and openly criticizing the government on state television.—
Hamidreza Azizi,
Foreign Affairs,
23 Dec. 2024
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Shiney-Ajay said Harris should have spent additional time criticizing lawmakers—like Manchin and Congressional Republicans—who limited the administration's climate goals, using it as a chance to emphasize her intent to seek greater climate victories in the future.—
Alex J. Rouhandeh,
Newsweek,
23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The first was in a degrading context: Brown University’s annual Spring Weekend, in 2013.—
Doreen St. Félix,
The New Yorker,
10 Feb. 2025
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In the case of the white-telephone-cord purse, Curran sniffed out the presence of plasticizers that typically emerge from degrading PVC—a useful alarm bell for staff who may want to store the purse in a sealed container.—
Sarah Everts,
Scientific American,
1 Apr. 2016
Thesaurus Entries Near belittling
Cite this Entry
“Belittling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/belittling. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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